Dave Ziegler on the Challenges of the NFL Trade Deadline

This season's NFL trade deadline is approaching fast, and the Las Vegas Raiders could very well be among the teams that choose to play a significant role in the event.

That, of course, will come down to the decisions of Raiders general manager Dave Ziegler, who already showed this past off-season that he's willing to make big moves in what has been just his first year at the helm.

There are, however, a number of risks that come with the trade deadline, as it is not nearly the same business that takes place in the offseason.

"It's challenging," Ziegler said when he joined the 'Raiders Podcast Network' this week. "And I've been involved in some trades at the deadline in the past and it's difficult because when you're looking at the NFL, 1: draft picks are so valuable and so, you have to find the right team, if someone's willing to give up a pick for a player, they have to be in a position where they feel like they can give up a pick, so that's one thing. The other aspect is salary and what type of salary you're taking on, how many years are left on that contract, and then what does that equate to the value of the player? A player on the last year of his contract that's going to be an eight-game rental is going to be, hopefully, less expensive than a player that has two years left on the contract. And then, they have to be a system fit.

"And so, [in] the NFL, it's difficult to find a match a lot of times in a trade because there's so many different elements that have to come together. And then, again, you have to find the right player that can come in and seamlessly fit. And a lot of trade deadline deals -- we've seen it in the past, there's been some years where there's been some big receivers traded -- typically you don't get the return on the investment, especially for skill players. And the reason being, if you think about the continuity that's developed throughout the preseason, -- a quarterback a receiver, a quarterback a tight end, a running back working with the offensive line -- when you just pluck and dump a player in that situation, it usually takes three or four weeks for them to get acclimated, and then, you're almost to the end of the season."

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