After years of turmoil, everything finally seems to be trending in the right direction for the Las Vegas Raiders. Five months after sending Davante Adams to the New York Jets, everything came around full circle for the Raiders with their trade for quarterback Geno Smith.
As it turned out, the same draft pick the Raiders received for Adams from the Jets was used by the team to acquire Smith, NFL reporter Albert Breer pointed out. New York received that pick — the 92nd overall selection of the 2025 NFL Draft — from the Detroit Lions, who relinquished it during the 2024 draft to trade up for tackle Giovanni Manu.
The third-round selection was all the Raiders had to give up to acquire Smith in the shocking Friday night trade. It was also all they acquired from the Jets for Adams, making it a pure swap of assets.
The acquisition of Smith gives the team a firm answer at quarterback for the first time since Derek Carr left in the 2023 offseason. Smith reunites with head coach Pete Carroll, whom he played for from 2020 to 2023. The offseason additions of Carroll and Smith gives the Raiders their best preseason outlook in nearly a decade.
Without Smith, the Seattle Seahawks now join the plethora of quarterback-needy teams aggressively entering free agency. Seattle appears to be fully in rebuild mode after releasing Tyler Lockett and preparing to trade DK Metcalf.
Raiders' new-look team entering 2025
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Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll, left, talks with quarterback Geno Smith (7) during a fourth quarter timeout against the New York Jets at Lumen Field.
Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images
Before free agency even opened, the Raiders have already made several noteworthy changes to its previously dysfunctional organization. Mark Davis, with the help of Tom Brady, brought in John Spytek and Carroll as general manager and head coach, respectively, in a pair of moves that have seemingly already paid off.
Since then, Las Vegas has already scooped up guard Alex Cappa, who claimed the unofficial “triple crown” in 2024, in free agency, before extending star edge-rusher Maxx Crosby. The moves set the table for the Smith trade, which addressed their biggest offseason need.
All of the early transactions occurred before free agency officially begins on March 12. The Raiders will have roughly $50 million of cap space to utilize in that period, where they can continue the momentum they have already built up.
Once free agency ends, the Raiders' spring season will get even more interesting in April at the 2025 NFL Draft. Despite former head coach Antonio Pierce fumbling the No. 1 overall pick, Las Vegas still has the No. 6 selection of the draft. Overall, they have seven picks to use in Green Bay after sending one to the Seahawks for Smith.