The Las Vegas Raiders could really use a quarterback in the 2024 NFL Draft. However, drafting 13, they are almost certainly out of the Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, Jayden Daniels territory, and even JJ McCarthy or Bo Nix could be off the board by then. That’s why new Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce and general manager Tom Telesco are looking to trade up from their current draft pick.

“The Raiders have been exploring trading up — and maybe not as high as you think, according to league and team sources,” Vic Tafur and Tashan Reed of The Athletic reported on Monday. “Telesco has also had conversations centered on potentially trading for picks in the 5 to 7 range, which are owned by the Los Angeles Chargers (pick No. 5), New York Giants (No. 6) and Tennessee Titans (No. 7) … [which] mostly makes sense if it’s a move up for a quarterback like Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy.”

As we saw last season with the Carolina Panthers and Chicago Bears, trading up to the top of the NFL draft is not only costly, it’s incredibly risky as well. However, moving up six to eight spots to a no man’s land where teams might be wanting to move back anyway, could be a much better move.

That said, a big swing like this is still a massive risk for Antonio Pierce and Tom Telesco in their first Raiders draft. It means all their eggs will be in this one basket, and the QB’s success or failure will likely determine their job status three years from now.

Additionally, McCarthy might not be a big enough prize as a Raider draft pick, especially for Pierce.

“Pierce has a strong relationship with Daniels stemming from leading his recruitment as an assistant coach at Arizona State — Daniels played there from 2019 to 2021 before transferring to LSU in 2022,” The Athletic also notes. “Perhaps there’s a window to trade up if the Bears and Commanders both take quarterbacks and the Patriots aren’t sold on whoever remains at pick No. 3, but that’s a difficult situation to project.”

Either way, it sounds like the Raiders are gearing up for a massive, franchise-defining move for a quarterback on Day 1 of the 2024 NFL Draft.