NFL Rumors: Wild Raiders trade could replace Davante Adams in draft

The NFL Scouting Combine begins today, and free agency is just three weeks away. Then comes the draft. With the news that the salary cap is ballooning to over $255 million, football fans are energized. The offseason is heating up, so what moves can their favorite teams make to contend in 2024?

This is the time of year when we see trades begin to happen. Sometimes it's player for player, sometimes a veteran gets dealt for a draft pick, and sometimes teams get what they can rather than cut someone that's no longer in their plans.

On Friday, FanSided published my column on one blockbuster trade all 32 NFL teams can make, and ESPN did something similar one day earlier that focused on one bold move (trade, free agent signing, draft pick) that each team could pull off. ESPN's Aaron Schatz had a lot of fun ideas in his article that should get people talking, but I wanted to focus on one, in particular, today that deserves a longer look.

Could the Raiders trade Davante Adams to move up and take Marvin Harrison Jr.?

Schatz proposes that the Raiders should trade Davante Adams and the No. 13 pick to the Cardinals for the No. 4 pick, then draft Ohio State receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. He cites Adams' age (32) and the Cardinals' need to improve at more than just receiver (especially on defense) as reasons the trade could work for both sides.

It may sound crazy to pass on a player as great as Adams, but I actually think I wouldn't do this trade if I was the Cardinals. Obviously, every draft prospect is a risk, but by all accounts, Harrison is one of the most can't-miss players, let alone receivers, to come along in quite a while. He's not a project that is going to take time to acclimate to the speed of the NFL.

Having the opportunity to draft Harrison and have him for four or five years on a rookie contract is too much of a salary cap cheat code to ignore. This would free the Cardinals up to use the rest of their $57 million in cap space on improving the defense, rather than spending over $113 million over the next three years on Adams, who, while still an elite receiver, is certainly getting to the point where most players at his position decline. Just look at A.J. Green and Julio Jones for examples of All-Pro receivers who hit a wall shortly after turning 30.

There are good defensive prospects in this draft, but nobody has the same certainty about their ultimate productivity as Harrison. Dallas Turner could be there at 13, and he could be good, but would I bet my franchise on it? The same goes for Terrion Arnold, Jared Verse, Kool-Aid McKinstry, Laiatu Latu and others.

There's also the distinct possibility that Harrison isn't even available at No. 4. The Bears could trade down a spot or two and take him to pair with Justin Fields, or the Patriots could pass on a quarterback early and take him at No. 3. Another team could trade into the top three and snatch Harrison away. For the Raiders to make this move, they'd have to be sure that they could get their guy.

Ultimately, I like to think of which team would hang up first if a trade was offered. If Raiders GM Tom Telesco called up Cardinals GM Monti Ossenfort and the two got to talking, I definitely think this proposed trade would be worth an organizational discussion on both sides, but in the end, I think Ossenfort and the Cardinals would pass.