Khalil Mack: Takeaways from his trade from the Raiders to the Bears
Jon Gruden has started his second tenure with the Oakland Raiders by trading away his team’s best player. Khalil Mack is now a Chicago Bear.
It’s no secret that Gruden wanted to have a big role in choosing his roster. Though personnel decisions are supposedly “a team effort” between Gruden and GM Reggie McKenzie, Mack’s trade suggests Gruden has a lot of pull, Mike Freeman’s and Scott Blair's respective tweets certainly seem to confirm as much.
By trading Mack, Gruden got the team an extra first round draft pick in each of the next two drafts and a few later round picks. He also cleared a ton of future cap space. Have you seen the extension Mack has now signed with the Bears?
Those first round picks could, in theory, get him two blue-chip players over just Mack, and the extra cap room means he can extend more players or make more of a splash in free agency. He has turned Mack into resources for potentially three or more players.
I understand the thinking of the trade if the above thinking is the reason, but not for a player like Mack. Mack isn’t just a good player, he is a generational talent. If he was just another good player, it would make more sense. You’re more likely to be able to replace that level of a player with the first round picks he acquired in exchange. Unless the Raiders are in the top five or ten selections of the Draft, they won’t be finding an equal to Mack with any level of certainty. Even if they were selecting that high they wouldn’t have that high a level of certainty. What’s more, even without Mack, the Raiders shouldn’t be picking that high, and now with Mack, I’m fairly sure the Bears won’t be either.
Instead, the Raiders should have been finding a way to keep a player as good as Mack, and build the entire defense around him. He was the nucleus of that unit. Just like Carr is the nucleus of the offense.
Amazingly, I’m not even done with why Gruden is a fool. But before I continue bashing him rather than the Raiders as a whole, have a look at this tweet:
Carrying on, and stemming from point “2” in the above tweet. This doesn’t exactly tell current players and future free agents the Raiders are an organization that take good care of their star players. Or even players that simply give everything for the team, are well liked in the locker room and are all-round good people. So it may be tough to keep a player like Bruce Irvin around, or even Derek Carr after this.
In short, the Raiders flat out lost this trade.
The offenses improvement relies heavily on Trubisky’s maturation, but I am going to give them the benefit of the doubt. In Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen they have a great, versatile backfield. In Allen Robinson they have a great receiver for Trubisky to target, in addition to seemingly a breakout ready Kevin White and new tight end in Tre Burton. They also have a good offensive line and an innovative offensive coordinator.
Defensively, Vic Fangio coupled with the drafting of Roquan Smith already had the Bears defense taking a big step forward. Add Khalil Mack to this team and the Bears now have a truly terrifying front seven.
A significant factor in the defense being so exciting is Fangio. Fangio was the mastermind behind the 49ers defense that brought that team to the Super Bowl. That defense was made by its front seven. Their defensive line was spearheaded by Justin Smith, then Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman roamed the inside linebacker spots and Aldon Smith and Ahmed Brooks brought the heat as pass rushers.
Giving Fangio those tools give him a very real chance to create an updated and faster version of that 49ers defense. If you’re an NFC North offensive coordinator, that should be a very scary thought.
Ultimately, the Bears come out of this trade with a generational talent and not too bad of a loss in terms of draft capitol. They are actually immediate contenders for a Wildcard playoff spot. The Raiders, on the other hand, have given up so much for not much in return. It may work out, who knows, but it won't be for at least a year or more until anyone sees any tangible results.
Gruden's second tenure with the Raiders has gotten off to a pretty bumpy start, I hope for the sake of Oakland Raiders' fans it settles down.
From one team executive who spoke to Raiders about Mack, speaking of Reggie McKenzie: “It was crystal clear to me that Reggie didn’t want to trade Mack.”— mike freeman (@mikefreemanNFL) September 1, 2018
So what does this move tell us?McKenzie said Mack trade "will sting" in the locker room..."They're going to miss Khalil. I'm going to miss Khalil. Let's make that point known now."— Scott Bair (@BairNBCS) September 2, 2018
Gruden has a plan
What is that plan? Well, it has something to do with his 10-year contract. Whether he is right or not, he must not deem the Raiders roster ready or as he wants it to have sustained success. He is working on long term plan to build a roster that will be a perennial contender, or at least a team with an extended 'Super Bowl window'.By trading Mack, Gruden got the team an extra first round draft pick in each of the next two drafts and a few later round picks. He also cleared a ton of future cap space. Have you seen the extension Mack has now signed with the Bears?
The Raiders couldn’t have signed him to a deal that big, and why would he settle for anything else? So Gruden let him go when he could get a lot in return, including two first round picks, and ensure his team had some financial freedom for years to come.The #Bears and star pass-rusher Khalil Mack have agreed to terms on a massive 6-year, $141M contract extension, source said. Total value: $155M over 7. $90M guaranteed. $60M fully guaranteed at signing. $23.5M new money average. Nicely done.— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 1, 2018
Those first round picks could, in theory, get him two blue-chip players over just Mack, and the extra cap room means he can extend more players or make more of a splash in free agency. He has turned Mack into resources for potentially three or more players.
Gruden is a fool
In that case, then, this is a good move for the Raiders, right? Not so much.I understand the thinking of the trade if the above thinking is the reason, but not for a player like Mack. Mack isn’t just a good player, he is a generational talent. If he was just another good player, it would make more sense. You’re more likely to be able to replace that level of a player with the first round picks he acquired in exchange. Unless the Raiders are in the top five or ten selections of the Draft, they won’t be finding an equal to Mack with any level of certainty. Even if they were selecting that high they wouldn’t have that high a level of certainty. What’s more, even without Mack, the Raiders shouldn’t be picking that high, and now with Mack, I’m fairly sure the Bears won’t be either.
Now, I love Derek Carr. I think last year was just a down year and I think he’ll have a long, successful career. BUT, at the time of his contract, was he deserving of being made the highest paid player in NFL history? That was, admittedly, before Gruden who thus has no control of that, but giving Carr that much money then not giving Mack, a better player, the same treatment is a bad look for the organization.Imagine a team making Derek Carr the highest paid player in NFL history and a team that couldn't sign Khalil Mack to a second contract.— Scott Kacsmar (@FO_ScottKacsmar) September 1, 2018
Oh yeah Oakland did both.
Amazingly, I’m not even done with why Gruden is a fool. But before I continue bashing him rather than the Raiders as a whole, have a look at this tweet:
That is why the heading is “Gruden is a fool”, not the Raiders.A few facts on Mack from league sources:— mike freeman (@mikefreemanNFL) September 1, 2018
1. Gruden barely spoke to Mack and Mack felt disrespected from the start.
2. Raiders players are in a sense of shock right now. Mack is highly respected in that locker room.
3. Gruden has pondered trading Mack since taking the job.
Carrying on, and stemming from point “2” in the above tweet. This doesn’t exactly tell current players and future free agents the Raiders are an organization that take good care of their star players. Or even players that simply give everything for the team, are well liked in the locker room and are all-round good people. So it may be tough to keep a player like Bruce Irvin around, or even Derek Carr after this.
No fucking way— Bruce Irvin (@BIrvin_WVU11) September 1, 2018
Finally, despite what I said earlier about getting two first round picks among others in this trade, the Raiders still gave way too much.No way— Derek Carr (@derekcarrqb) September 1, 2018
So just to recap, they gave away Mack AND gave back a second round pick. What?! They ended up giving Mack away to gain two first round picks and a 2019 sixth round pick, but move down and out of the second round of the 2020 draft and out of the fifth round of the 2020 draft.Trade official, source tells ESPN:— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 1, 2018
Bears get: Khalil Mack, a 2020 second-round round pick and a conditional 2020 fifth-round pick.
Raiders get: 2019 first-round pick, 2020 first-round pick, 2020 third-round pick, 2019 sixth-round pick.
So Bears get back second-round pick, too
In short, the Raiders flat out lost this trade.
The Bears are cooking
It seemed that the consensus, before this trade, was that the Bears were going to be a much improved team. A new coach and system, a revamped offense and young players with another year of experience. Now they add Khalil Mack, a player better than anyone they could have drafted with the picks they gave up. They also re-signed him to a 6-year extension, so he is going to be there for a long time.The offenses improvement relies heavily on Trubisky’s maturation, but I am going to give them the benefit of the doubt. In Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen they have a great, versatile backfield. In Allen Robinson they have a great receiver for Trubisky to target, in addition to seemingly a breakout ready Kevin White and new tight end in Tre Burton. They also have a good offensive line and an innovative offensive coordinator.
A significant factor in the defense being so exciting is Fangio. Fangio was the mastermind behind the 49ers defense that brought that team to the Super Bowl. That defense was made by its front seven. Their defensive line was spearheaded by Justin Smith, then Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman roamed the inside linebacker spots and Aldon Smith and Ahmed Brooks brought the heat as pass rushers.
Now, this tweet isn’t saying that the Bears’ players are exactly like the corresponding 49ers players, but it does tell you who will be manning those roles. What’s more, this tweet doesn’t consider that on the other side to Mack, the Bears will have Leonard Floyd rushing the passer, and Danny Trevathan, though not on a level with Bowman, will be alongside Smith at inside linebacker.Vic Fangio was my favorite NFL DC when he was with the 49ers. Look at the roles these guys will play.— Matt Miller (@nfldraftscout) September 1, 2018
Roquan Smith - Patrick Willis
Akiem Hicks - Justin Smith
Khalil Mack - Aldon Smith
The Bears defense is about to be AMAZING.
Giving Fangio those tools give him a very real chance to create an updated and faster version of that 49ers defense. If you’re an NFC North offensive coordinator, that should be a very scary thought.
Ultimately, the Bears come out of this trade with a generational talent and not too bad of a loss in terms of draft capitol. They are actually immediate contenders for a Wildcard playoff spot. The Raiders, on the other hand, have given up so much for not much in return. It may work out, who knows, but it won't be for at least a year or more until anyone sees any tangible results.
Gruden's second tenure with the Raiders has gotten off to a pretty bumpy start, I hope for the sake of Oakland Raiders' fans it settles down.
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