Trading draft picks?

Question

Pro's and Con's for a bad team to trade their high pick. I think teams like Raiders or Detriot have no talent, should trade their pick. Both teams are more than one player away. Trade down and try build a core of players. Your thoughts?

Answer 1

you are exactly right. one player no matter how good couldn't help a team with lots of holes. if they trade down they may not get the best players but can get more players. also just because players are picked latter doesn't mean they suck. i mean look at Tom Brady for instance, also some first round picks are huge flops. so it's kind of risky but i would rather risk it and get three or four mediocre or good players who can/will be one of the best at their positions maybe soon or a few years, then one ''great'' player who will help but not fill every hole.

Answer 2

I disagree. While you are correct that they are more than one player away, they don't have "no talent". Oakland has an outstanding defense (esp. passing defense) and would be greatly benefited from an offensive-line and a quarterback. The wide receivers, while horribly behaved, are fairly talented. If the Raiders can draft Russell number 1 and get an offensive lineman in the second round, they will be much improved. They won't win more than 5 games, but repeat the process next year, and they could be solid (although not playoff contenders because they play in a killer division). The Lions are a different case. The one position they are stacked at is wide receiver (albeit talented players who consistently underachieve, probably due to again lack of an offensive line and quarterback). They won't want Calvin Johnson due to this, and they can probably still get Joe Thomas at #4 or #5. I would trade the #2 pick to someone like Tampa Bay with a very weak offense and an aging star WR (Galloway) and get their second round pick as well, where they can get Thomas in round 1 and another offensive lineman as well as a QB in round 2 (John Beck or Kevin Kolb come to mind).

Answer 3

Oakland has no choice this year BUT to take the #1 pick. Whether it be Russel or Quinn, they are in desperate need of a QB. Trading down to get a good lineman would be the worst move ever. For both teams, though, not only are they a few players short of a decent team, but I feel that both the Lions and the Raiders need a shakeup in management. Al Davis and Mullen are both horrible at what they do now, and if they get thrown out and get some good upper management, then maybe in a year or 2 the new owners/GMs will decide what is best to do during the draft.

Answer 4

A lot would depend on what other teams would be willing to pay to get their picks. I would be surprised if the Raiders are willing to move out of the #1 slot but the Lions are a different situation. The problem the Lions face has nothing to do with who they may want but rather who is in charge of the picks this year. If management is committed to changing things (and it would be in Millens best interest to play along) the Lions would allow Marinelli to take the players he wants. They have started a purge of cancers but it would be a waste if they turn back around and take someone not in his mold. I know everyone thinks the Lions are in love with Joe Thomas....dont believe it. First of all they are paying top 5 money to Backus (hardly worth it) and they added Foster in the Bly deal (Foster is a former 1st rounder still on his rookie deal so they are paying him 1st round money as well) so it would make no sense to add yet another top of the draft OL and pay that kind of money to 3 tackles. They are far more likely to address that woeful defense and trading down might enable them to land more defensive players. Their D line for the most part is grossly underachieving....the linebacking is possibly the worst in the league (Paris Lenon....a starter, cut as a special teamer from GB, it cant get much worse) and the DBs are not in the mold of the style that Marinelli favors.
So Yes...I can see the Lions turning the draft over to Marinelli (although Millen will take any credit) and they likely deal down and maybe even further down than people realize but I cant see the Raiders moving their pick....Al Davis wants the hype and attention he can get from keeping the pick.

Answer 5

You dont start being good by just getting decient players. You have to have a few guys to build your team around. Bengals didnt trade out of the #1 spot and drafted Carson Palmer. Are you saying they should of traded out of that spot so they can get a few other players that wont help them as much? First get your cornerstone players with your early rd picks. Then in the following year you can then trade your picks for more picks since you already got the cornerstones on the team.

Answer 6

It all depends on team needs. If you're a team with several needs, the more picks you can get the better. If you're a team with one missing piece, trading up to get your player of choice is a great strategy.

For a team like the Raiders, trading down will allow them to fill more holes, but the problem with that is that trading down doesn't allow them to get a "franchise player" they can still get good starters, but if a team needs a star QB or something, trading down makes you miss out on those players.

But i do agree that team with a bulk of needs should trade down.

Answer 7

usually the first few picks are going to be the core players you are going to build your team around, look at Peyton Manning, Carson Palmer, Alex Smith, Eli Manning, Vick (actually strike the last one). trading down often leads you to players in which fit into systems, instead of somone that you can build around. Ben Roethlisberger is a great system QB, but not a great QB to build your team around. if you trade down you often will end up with system type players, instead of core players that you build around. (note i tended to talk about Offensive players, mostly because the raiders have a great defense so there really isn't much that is going to go into defense)

also it depends on teams dire needs. even though first pick teams usually need more than one player, they do usually need one position the most, and if your best prospect you are looking at may go in a pick past the one you are trading for, it is not worth it usually. last year's draft the Texans traded down, and would not have gotten Reggie bush but oh wait....in the end they should have traded down because they wanted Mario Williams instead. so assuming the Texans were to go after Reggie Bush, it would be not such a good idea to trade down, even if they do need more than one position, because Bush i the type of talent that a team can base their games on. now they should have traded down now that we know that they wanted Mario Williams.

so raiders/detroit.
Raiders are looking at Russel the most probably, and in my honest opinion, only Oakland is looking at Russel in the first 8 picks, so if you can trade down within these 8 then probably it is a good idea, because Quinn most likely be the first QB taken IF the Raiders were not at #1. and trading down is pretty easy, because alot of teams WANT Calvin Johnson

Lions if looking at Joe Thomas they could trade down, but Arizona is looking for line help too, so they can't really trade down anyways. if they want Brady Quinn, they most likely cannot trade down. RAiders will get Johnson OR Russel...maybe Quinn, so just sit tight there and pick up Quinn. if they trade down to anyone else, they can lose the chance to draft Quinn

Answer 8

Ill agree with that theory with the Lions. I thought the raiders "d' held up pretty good. the offense, if they had a QB that could throw they could have been much better. The Raiders need a QB , the lions need o'line and defense

Answer 9

your right they shouldn't trade there picks unless they get someone like lt or Reggie bush or they could also try getting someone like Drew Brees