Oakland Raiders: 3 trades that could land the team Odell Beckham Jr.

Conclusion

After the whole Antonio Brown debacle, it’s hard for Raider Nation to fully wrap their heads around transplanting a star player into the system and having it end on a positive.

Jon Gruden’s track record with acquiring wide receivers hasn’t exactly been sparkling, either.

But Odell Beckham Jr. would supply exactly the kind of star-power that the franchise is chomping at the bit to establish by the time they roll out the silver and black carpet in Las Vegas.

They have already shown an ability to mold their own star-caliber players. Josh Jacobs deserves to be a household name in the coming years, and his continued success in his rookie campaign should lead him right into the national media’s line of sight when the bright lights come on.

In a season full of question marks around the receiving corps thanks to a plethora of issues, the Raiders have to be looking down multiple avenues on how to put out a consistent product on the field.

We’ve seen spurts of offensive success early on in games, but the close-outs depend on stars who can rise up to those moments.

Odell Beckham Jr. could be that star.

But what he could also be is another detour from a rebuild that needs to maintain a recipe in consistent, reliable drafting — in loading up on picks and building the team around young studs who are homegrown.

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Beckham could be another distraction from a team that has established itself as being all about “next man up.” Perhaps the team can get away with their unconventional spread and their constant overturn of players.

But the biggest red flag in all of this has to be the proposed symbiosis between Odell Beckham Jr. and Derek Carr. Could they reasonably be able to build off each other? Better than Baker Mayfield? More so than Eli Manning?

There’s a reason why the Raiders have leaned on their tight ends this season, and it goes beyond the limited depth of the wide receivers.

Odell Beckham Jr. might be interested in what Las Vegas offers his brand compared to Cleveland, but he might be going for the same ride that he’s been whining about in two other cities.

The reality is that there is little hope that Beckham would become absolved of his frustrations by teaming with Derek Carr.

The last thing this team needs is a rehash of drama that revolves around how a team does or doesn’t utilize a specific player. The Oakland Raiders have to be above that. They dodged a bullet when enrollment opened up Central Michigan State and Antonio Brown booked it.

The Oakland Raiders will need to find a way to establish a consistent wide receiver group. They’ll need Tyrell Williams to stay healthy. They’ll need one of their acquisitions to step up big. And they’ll need Carr to spread the field.

But it can be done in a more cost-efficient way.

The Oakland Raiders may have previously been linked to Odell Beckham Jr., and they might end up being linked to him this time around as well. But they’re a different team than they were months ago. OBJ is a different player.

And while the Raiders might be tempted to roll the dice, they’d be better off saving it for draft night.