Las Vegas Raiders minority owner Tom Brady has had his fingerprints all over the team’s offseason moves, from his influence in the hiring of Pete Carroll to landing quarterback Geno Smith. With the franchise’s immediate future set, Brady is now expected to influence on the future at quarterback.
Brady’s first choice wasn’t Carroll. Las Vegas first pursued Mike Vrabel and Ben Johnson, but both turned down the Raiders’ coaching vacancy for other offers. Likewise, the team aggressively pursued a Matthew Stafford trade and only pursued Smith after a deal with the Los Angeles Rams fell through.
Las Vegas signed Smith to a multi-year extension, seemingly locking him in as its starting quarterback for multiple seasons. However, Brady’s approach to finding a long-term successor would open the door to Smith only spending a year with the club.
According to Vic Tafur of The Athletic, Brady ‘likes the idea of’ a rookie quarterback sitting in their first year and ‘soaking it all in’ during that first season before challenging for the starting job the following year. That also matters because of how Las Vegas structured Smith’s contract.
As noted by Spotrac, the Raiders could release Smith in 2026 and only carry an $18.5 million dead cap while still receiving $8 million in cap space. While $18 million is a sizable chunk of the NFL salary cap for a team with playoff aspirations, it pales in comparison to other contracts for top quarterbacks who could be cap casualties next offseason.
That would seemingly open the door more to the Raiders using the sixth overall pick on Shedeur Sanders. However, Las Vegas also has glaring needs at running back, wide receiver, cornerback, linebacker and along the defensive line.
More realistically, the Raiders will address one of their biggest needs in Round 1 by landing an immediate starter. On Day 2, Las Vegas could then snag a developmental quarterback prospect like Jalen Milroe, Jaxson Dart, or Tyler Shough to sit behind Smith for a season. Then, Brady’s plan could be executed with the Day 2 quarterback becoming the Raiders’ starter in 2026.
