Oakland Raiders Let Trade Deadline Pass Without Any Surprises From Al Davis

Every year, from the time the season ends until the trade deadline in week six, there are rumors about the Oakland Raiders. Whenever a player is mentioned in a rumor, the Raiders are listed as one of the possible landing spots.

Raiders owner Al Davis has often fed the media monster by making blockbuster trades like the one made just prior to the 2009 season when the Raiders acquired Richard Seymour from the New England Patriots for a first round draft pick.

The rumors about the Raiders began again on Sunday when reports came out that the Raiders had notified all of the teams in the league that every member of the roster was available for a trade if the offer was right. If this is true, it is hard to believe that no one made an offer, which means that Al Davis and the Raiders declined on any offers that were made.

There are two separate reasons why the Raiders would have made a move before the deadline. The Raiders would either be making a move to make the team better now in order to compete this season, or they would admit defeat and revert to rebuilding mode.

 

Make the Team Better Now

If Al Davis believed that this team was capable of winning this season, he likely would have made a move. There are two places where the Raiders are in obvious need of improvement, offensive line and wide receiver.

Already without a first round pick for 2011, the Raiders would likely have had to couple players with picks in order to get an offensive lineman or wide receiver.

With the trades of Deion Branch and Randy Moss (likely not wanted in Oakland anyway), and Vincent Jackson not available to the Raiders, the wide receiver market is pretty thin. There was, however, an offensive lineman that was within reach.

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