Hot Takes for Davante Adams, More Raiders Stars Ahead of Training Camp
The Las Vegas Raiders faithful are going to be expecting a lot more from general manager Dave Ziegler and head coach Josh McDaniels in 2023. The aggressive moves to get Davante Adams and Chandler Jones did not lead to success in 2022.
The 6-11 campaign could be written off as a transition period, but a repeat of those kinds of results would lead to a lot of anxiety from fans, ownership and stakeholders.
Ziegler and McDaniels continued to put their stamp on things this offseason. By moving on from Derek Carr and signing Jimmy Garoppolo they have made some moves that could define their tenure with the team.
Of course, a lot of that is going to depend on how the stars on this team perform. They form the nucleus and establish the floor for what this team can accomplish in 2023.
Here are three hot takes for how those stars are going to perform in a season that feels like it's high stakes for the Ziegler-McDaniels regime.
Davante Adams Will Request Trade by Deadline
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Dan Graziano of ESPN recently put out a list of the "most intriguing" players of the 2023 season. The list includes 10 players with varying storylines heading into the season but Davante Adams' inclusion will be of particular interest to Raiders fans.
The analyst asks an important question about what it's going to look like if Adams becomes frustrated with the Raiders offense.
Adams proved to be one of the best receivers in the game last season. He posted his second season with over 1,500 yards and proved he could do it without Aaron Rodgers while reuniting with Derek Carr, who was his college quarterback at Fresno State.
Now, Carr is gone and Adams has been open about being less than excited about the moves the team made this offseason.
"I'm going to have to buy into this and try to be as optimistic as possible," he told Mirin Fader of The Ringer. "It's not what I expected to happen, but it's something that's the reality now."
That's a positive take from Adams, but it also isn't promising. Jimmy Garoppolo is not the most exciting quarterback to be paired with. He can be an efficient operator of an offense but he does have physical limitations.
The Raiders open with the Denver Broncos who they beat twice last season, but then they get the Bills, Steelers and Chargers before playing Adams' former team on Monday Night Football.
It's not hard to envision a scenario where a slow start and a loss to the Packers on national television could wear out the relationship between Adams and the Raiders.
Tyree Wilson Will Make Fans Forget Top Cornerback Prospects
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Heading into the draft, there was a fairly large consensus that the Las Vegas Raiders were going to take a cornerback. If a mock draft deviated from corner it was usually for Kentucky quarterback Will Levis or Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter.
Instead, the Raiders surprised a lot of people by taking powerful edge rusher Tyree Wilson.
Wilson is going to prove anyone doubting the pick wrong in 2023. Wilson is a great fit for the Raiders defensive needs. That's true of cornerback, but there's a lot to be said for building a defense with the pass rush first.
As the Philadelphia Eagles showed last season, an elite pass rush can make life easier for the secondary and lead to success in the postseason.
The 6'6", 271-pound defensive lineman is a great addition to the roster because he can outright replace Chandler Jones if he fails to produce again or he could slide inside in passing situations to allow the Raiders to have Jones, Maxx Crosby and Wilson on the field at the same time.
That's going to lead Wilson to have a lot of one-on-one's and favorable pass-rushing scenarios. He's going to put up solid production in Year 1 and contend for the Rookie of the Year award.
The long-term answers at cornerback might still not be on the roster, but Wilson is going to win fans over quickly.
Jimmy Garoppolo Will Prove He's Not the Answer
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Jimmy Garoppolo is a fine stopgap. At his best, he's an efficient point guard who can distribute the ball to playmakers.
Unfortunately, that's not enough for a team who appears to be trying to fix the airplane mid-flight.
The Raiders decided to move on from Derek Carr. The writing for that was on the wall down the stretch last season and it's fair that a new regime would want to part ways with the incumbent quarterback when said quarterback has only been to one playoff game in nine seasons.
However, the Raiders tried to avoid expending draft capital to find a long-term solution by signing Jimmy Garoppolo to a three-year, $72.8 million contract.
It's a move that will make them look like brass look like geniuses if Garoppolo stays healthy and plays at a reasonable level. But things are already iffy on the health front. Jimmy G had to have foot surgery and, while the team is hopeful he'll be ready for training camp, they still have an out in the contract and are still not 100 percent sure it's going to work out, per Vic Tafur of The Athletic.
Garoppolo was 16th in QBR last season and that was when he was fully healthy and had one of the best supporting casts in the league and Kyle Shanahan calling plays.
That's not the situation he has with the Raiders. Things could get worse before they get better at the quarterback position.
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