It’s time for the Raiders to tank

Don’t expect Davante Adams and Amari Cooper will be the last notable wide receivers moved before next month’s trade deadline.

The MMQB staff saw that trading spree come with a handful of playoff contenders in need of help at wide receiver. My colleague Matt Verderame had Adams and Cooper at the top of his list 15 potential wide receivers who could be traded before the November 5th deadline. Verderame mentioned the Buffalo Bills I still needed a wide receivereven after the win over the New York Jets on Monday night. The team agreed to his hiring and brought in Cooper hours after the Jets made a trade for Adams.

The Bills are ahead of the Jets in the AFC East standings, but with the addition of Cooper may not be enough to keep up with the Kansas City Chiefs, Houston Texans and Baltimore Ravens. It wouldn’t be surprising if one of these three teams made a significant trade before the start of November.

The Jets now have a big problem with two dynamic wide receivers in Adams and Garrett Wilson. But how will the Jets utilize them in the Aaron Rodgers-led offense?

Don’t expect the Las Vegas Raiders to look for a new wide receiver to replace Adams. They have a lot of problems to solve, but nothing is more important than acquiring a franchise quarterback. Let’s take a look at how the Raiders might embrace the “T” word now that Adams is in the New York area.

Raiders need to embrace the tank to find a franchise QB

Manzano’s view: fact

In the NFL you either rebuild from scratch or go all out to win straight away. Those who try to do both at the same time often end up stuck in mediocre land – a grueling cycle that’s hard to escape.

The Raiders learned this the hard way. Las Vegas needs a complete renovation, and It should have started after the team split with quarterback Derek Carr during the 2023 offseason. Maybe even sooner because the team desperately needed a fresh start after firing Jon Gruden in 2021. Instead, Raiders owner Mark Davis, known for his head-scratching splash moves, hired offensive tackle Josh McDaniels and inked a trade for Adams to pair with Carr. Adams, Carr and McDaniels are gone, but let’s not delve too deeply into the times Davis misjudged his team’s situation or this column might never end.

Obviously, no team will ever admit that they are tanking, and Raiders coach Antonio Pierce would never allow it. But Davis hired GM Tom Telesco because of his experience in ousting Champ Kelly. It’s time for Telesco to create a viable path to drafting a quarterback early in the first round next year. That’s not to say that Telesco isn’t to blame for how poorly the season turned out for the 2-4 Raiders, as an Adams trade should have happened in the offseason. And a team without a franchise quarterback probably shouldn’t have made any spectacular signings in free agency, such as handing Christian Wilkins a four-year, $110 million contract.

But the damage caused by not committing to a full rebuild is done. Now Davis has to sit back and give Telesco the green light to get more draft picks. Maybe Las Vegas should even consider trading star edge rusher Maxx Crosby. That’s a bit extreme, but the defense has been a disappointment this season.

Last year, Pierce brought the Raiders to life when he took over as interim coach, resulting in some wins that put the team out of position to potentially recruit a top quarterback prospect. That’s why they’re sticking with Gardner Minshew II and Aidan O’Connell.

Now it’s time for Raiders fans to sit back and just have enough for the rest of this season. Maybe a top-five pick in next year’s draft will lead to better days. This was the case with the Chicago Bears and the Washington Commanders. Heck, maybe even the New England Patriots, too the flashes that Drake Maye showed in his starting debut last week.

Feel free to embrace the tank, silver and black.

The arrival of Davante Adams will hurt Garrett Wilson on the field

Manzano’s view: fiction

I am I’m not sure how much better the Jets are will be now that they have Adams. Sure, they could get out of that 2-4 hole and secure a wild-card spot from a beaten-down AFC conference. But the Jets may have simply gone from a non-playoff team to a once-in-a-lifetime playoff team after the blockbuster trade.

That’s great for a team that hasn’t made the playoffs in 13 seasons. The Chiefs, Texans and Ravens appear to be a step ahead of the rest, and the Bills, who just beat the Jets, aren’t all that far behind.

But after the trade, I’m more curious about Wilson’s role in the Jets’ offense. Wilson began to become Rodgers’ new Adams, as Wilson reached more than 100 receiving yards in two consecutive games.

Wilson’s 33 goals in back-to-back games may not happen again this season, but now the big threat could be covered by more individual goals. The defense didn’t respect Allen Lazard and Mike Williams on the field. They’ll definitely pay more attention to Adams now that he’s back with Rodgers.

Sure, Rodgers targeted Adams heavily during their final season together in Green Bay, but that was due to the lack of depth at wide receiver. Life was simpler when Rodgers had Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb in their prime and a young Adams on the field.

The only concern with this new receiving duo is that they are both downfield playmakers. Wilson has the speed and Adams has a significant catch radius. But they are both excellent route runners and will need to commit to quicker, shorter throws if the offensive line continues to struggle.

Amari Cooper will help the Bills reach the Super Bowl

Manzano’s view: fiction

The Bills quickly countered the Jets’ move for Adams by completing a trade with the Cleveland Browns for Cooper.

Yes, the move will potentially help the Bills capture the AFC East crown for the fifth straight year, but the trade was more about keeping up with the Chiefs, Texans and Ravens. Buffalo was fortunate to leave New Jersey with a win thanks to some goofy misses from Jets kicker Greg Zuerlein.

The Bills are stuck in their own category in the AFC after suffering two bad losses to the Ravens and Texans earlier this season. Buffalo is better than the handful of mediocre teams fighting for the three wild card spots, and after acquiring Cooper, the team is now closer to competing with the AFC’s big three.

The Bills aren’t quite qualified to be considered serious contenders to represent the AFC in Super Bowl LIX due to their lack of defense. The pass rushers lack consistency and the run defense is a problem after being punished by Derrick Henry and Breece Hall in recent weeks. They also have a coaching problem. Sean McDermott let a late-game mistake slip due to poor management in Houston, and it hurt the Bills again as Rodgers played Hail Mary on Monday night.

But the offense will be better with Cooper. Just last year, Cooper and Joe Flacco torched opposing secondaries to secure a playoff spot in Cleveland. After moving on from the struggling Deshaun Watson, Cooper will be a reliable No. 1 target for Josh Allen. This move will also add depth as the team has had poor offensive performances in recent weeks due to the absences of Khalil Shakir and James Cook.

The Steelers will regret benching Justin Fields in favor of Russell Wilson

Manzano’s view: fact

The Pittsburgh Steelers were on the better side of a mediocre country after qualifying for the playoffs as a wild card team last season. It didn’t get them far, but hey, they did better than the Raiders, who don’t have a legitimate franchise quarterback.

Pittsburgh created better quarterback options by signing Russell Wilson and Justin Fields. But this is where I stop praising the Steelers. Perhaps Fields was never a true starting option because coach Mike Tomlin really wants to see what he has in Wilson, the former Super Bowl-winning quarterback. Wilson is supposedly is expected to represent the first team at training this week before Sunday’s game against the Jets.

It was Wilson’s job to lose throughout the offseason before being sidelined with a calf injury. Tomlin was forced to turn to Fields and is now leaning toward drafting him despite a 4-2 record. Maybe Tomlin is tired of mediocrity and is trying to improve the draft pick this way. Obviously, that’s not how the Steelers work – for better or worse.

Tomlin must view Wilson as the missing piece that will transform the Steelers from a playoff fringe team into a real threat to the Ravens in the fight for the AFC North crown. Tomlin might end up disappointed if he thinks that, because Wilson hasn’t been the same dominant quarterback over the last two years with the Denver Broncos. It’s been a long time since Wilson won the Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks. It could be that Tomlin is making a mistake if he doesn’t go with Fields after six strong weeks of the season.

Jerry Jones will fire Mike McCarthy before the end of the season

Manzano’s view: fiction

The ugly losses are starting to hit Cowboys owner Jerry Jones he threatened to fire radio presenters for questioning him about his squad mistakes.

Jones is starting to lose patience, but Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy shouldn’t expect to be fired in the coming weeks. Jones tends to be patient with his coaches, evidenced by giving Jason Garrett nine seasons at the helm.

Jones will likely get through this and give McCarthy a chance to get the Cowboys into the postseason. If he doesn’t, Jones is aware that Bill Belichick, Ben Johnson, Mike Vrabel and many other high-profile prospects will be available in the offseason. There is no need to anticipate the search process.

The Cowboys aren’t as good as last season, but they might sneak into the playoffs. Plus, the NFC East isn’t as good as the NFC North. And maybe not even as good as the NFC South with the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Given a difficult schedule and a long list of on-field problems, it’s hard to imagine a playoff berth for the Cowboys, but it’s too early to panic, even if Jones is starting to lose patience.