With the deadline for teams to cut their roster down to 53 players coming quickly, not only are there plenty of releases, but also trades coming down as well with teams looking to get any sort of capital for a player they plan on getting rid of anyway. Teams are also aware of where they need help and look for additions as well before the regular season starts, and it can even lead to some trades between rivals such as the Las Vegas Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs.
The Chiefs have been without star defensive tackle Chris Jones who is holding out for a new contract. This issue has yet to have been resolved, and so the Chiefs are in dire need of some depth to hold down the interior of their defensive line.
As such they turned to an unlikely trade partner in the rival Raiders who, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN, dealt defensive tackle Neil Farrell to Kansas City for a sixth-round pick:
Intra-division trade: With Chris Jones still holding out, the Chiefs traded a sixth-round draft pick to the Las Vegas Raiders for DT Neil Farrell, per sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 29, 2023
The Raiders clearly felt Farrell was expendable and thus had no problems trading him away for a late-round pick, even to a division rival. A fourth-round pick out of LSU just a year ago, Farrell appeared in nine games as a rookie for the Raiders last season, totaling 12 tackles, two quarterback hits, and one tackle for loss.
Jerry Tillery and Bilal Nichols look to have locked down the starting spots on the interior of the Raiders’ defensive line, and the team clearly felt it has enough depth in order to let Farrell go. Hopefully, it’s a move that doesn’t come back to haunt them later.
The defense of the Raiders will be closely watched this season as it was one of the worst in the NFL last year. The offense has the potential to be a top unit, but if the defense can’t hold its own, all of the pressure will fall to Jimmy Garoppolo, Davante Adams and Josh Jacobs to carry the team.
With Maxx Crosby leading the way, and the additions of Marcus Peters and Marcus Epps in the secondary, there is potential for improvement. Holding down the interior is extremely important as well, and the Raiders feel they can do that without Farrell.
