A Deeper Look into the Raiders' Decision to Trade Jakobi Meyers

The Las Vegas Raiders' front office finally set aside their pride down and traded Jakobi Meyers.

Oct 5, 2025; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Jakobi Meyers (16) makes a catch against the Indianapolis Colts during the second half at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images | Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images

The Las Vegas Raiders gave the Jacksonville Jaguars a good look at Jakobi Meyers before shipping him to Duval.

Analyzing the Raiders' Trade

Tyler Sullivan of CBS Sports graded all of the trades that took place before Tuesday's trade deadline. He gave the Raiders a B+ for trading Meyers to the Jaguars.

"The Raiders were going to lose Meyers one way or another. The wide receiver had requested a trade this summer, and the team decided against moving him. Then, when he was recently asked if he still had a desire to be dealt, Meyers confirmed that a trade would still be his preferred outcome," Sullivan said.

"Does that sound like someone who is going to re-sign when he becomes a free agent this offseason when his contract expires? Don't think so. 

Sullivan noted that Las Vegas' poor start to the season made trading Meyers make much more sense than it did at the start of the season. The Raiders' decision to add multiple draft picks for a player in the final year of his contract with the team was the right thing to do.

Nov 2, 2025; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Montaric Brown (30) tackles Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Jakobi Meyers (16) during the second half at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

"At 2-6, Las Vegas made the prudent move to ship off Meyers and has gained a solid return for him, considering that he's in the final year of his deal. For a rebuilding team, like the Raiders may become this offseason, bolstering the draft cupboard is critical," Sullivan said.

"As for this current version of the Raiders, Meyers didn't jell with quarterback Geno Smith, who had zero touchdowns and four interceptions when targeting him this season."

Shortly after the trade, Raiders Offensive Coordinator Chip Kelly was tightlipped about the details of the trade. The Raiders have quick turnaround, as they face the Denver Broncos on Thursday Night Football. Kelly explained his focus is on game planning for the matchup.

"I have nothing. I'm concerned with Tuesday afternoon as a coordinator, so those decisions are all made, those are Pete [Carroll] and Spy [John Spytek] and I've got great faith in what those guys are doing,” Kelly said.

Las Vegas Raiders OC Chip Kelly | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI

“So, they just told us this morning, and our plan adjusts offensively for not having Jakobi [Meyers] in the plan against Denver, and that's it. So, I don't look any farther than that. We're really good at controlling what you can control. So, as a player, they control what they control. As an assistant coach, you control what you can control, and then the rest of it follows up. But I don't have any aspirations to be a general manager, so I'm not looking at any of that stuff." 

Las Vegas Raiders OC Chip Kelly | Darrell Craig Harris, On SI

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