The Las Vegas Raiders ultimately decided against making a play for free-agent quarterback Tom Brady before the six-time Super Bowl champion signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
However, Vic Tafur of The Athletic reported the Raiders were indeed gauging estimates for his market and doing their due diligence almost right up until Brady made his decision.
Tafur also noted the Raiders had several logistical hurdles towards getting a deal done (via Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk):
Writes Tafur, “The Raiders were indeed sniffing around Brady as late as this week, according to league sources, and while it is true they never made him an offer, some ballpark numbers were made known to him at some point.”
But Tafur points out that fit and finances became the issue, with the Raiders never making it into the category of “serious finalist” and with the Raiders unwilling to commit $50 million guaranteed for 2020 and 2021 because “the game film the last two years just didn’t warrant that in the Raiders’ minds.” (That’s a diplomatic way of saying that Father Time is gaining ground.)
Tafur adds that, if the Raiders had been a “serious finalist” for Brady, they would have begun shopping quarterback Derek Carr. Tafur says, as to Carr, that “even his critics should agree” that he’s a top-16 quarterback.
The last point about shopping Derek Carr is what ultimately made signing Brady a long shot.
General manager Mike Mayock and head coach Jon Gruden have both offered verbal messages of support for Carr, who is coming off arguably the best season of his career.
Las Vegas did not land Brady, but they made a number of significant upgrades to the defense as they hope to reach the playoffs in 2020.
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