NFL Oakland Raiders

Oakland Raiders Should Try to Trade D.J. Hayden In The Offseason

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By @Kevin_Saito

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

It raised a lot of eyebrows when Oakland Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie made D.J. Hayden the team’s first-round pick at 12th overall in the 2013 draft. Given the very serious injury that nearly killed him during his senior season at the University of Houston, there were very serious and valid questions about Hayden’s health and effectiveness moving forward.

He defied the odds, overcame the injury, and got himself back on the football field, which is an amazing feat in and of itself. Unfortunately for the Raiders, Hayden has yet to prove himself worthy of the high pick used on him, and the team would be smart to try and move him this offseason.

Looking back on it now, it was a terrible draft selection by a rebuilding team that couldn’t afford to burn a draft pick. The 2013 draft class was filled with players who are making a big impact on the Raiders as they seek to turn their fortunes around to end more than a decade of losing. OL Menelik Watson (second round), LB Sio Moore (third round), TE Mychal Rivera (sixth round), RB Latavius Murray (sixth round), and WR Brice Butler (seventh round) have all found their niches within the structure of the team, and are helping form a potent, young nucleus for the team to build around.

But it’s that first-round pick of Hayden that still sticks in the collective craw of the the Raiders’ fanbase. In his rookie season, an injury limited him to just eight total games, and now in his second year with the team, injuries again limited him on the field, allowing him to play in just six games so far in 2014. The results he’s posted on the field have been mixed at best.

Hayden has shown tremendous potential, but he’s also shown a maddening inconsistency and at times immaturity. His lack of playing time, thanks to his numerous injuries, have hampered his growth and development. The Raiders never know what they are going to get out of Hayden on any given play. He’s just as likely to make a spectacular play on a ball as he is to get torched by a receiver running a great route, or he’ll draw a dumb penalty for say, taunting.

Using the 12th overall pick on Hayden, given his production on the field (or lack thereof) looks even worse when you consider who the Raiders could have taken with that pick. Eddie Lacy, Le’Veon Bell, DeAndre Hopkins, Cordarrelle Patterson and Kiko Alonso, among others, were still on the board long after the Raiders had selected Hayden.

Hayden has unquestionable talent, but his injuries have set him way back in his development. Given some of his struggles on the field, there is no guarantee that he will ever play at a level worthy of the first-round pick McKenzie burned on him.

Simply put, the Raiders can no longer afford to wait for the elite talent McKenzie believed him to be to show up. They need players who can contribute now. With the emergence of T.J. Carrie and Neiko Thorpe, the outstanding play of Tarrell Brown and the continued development of Keith McGill this season, Hayden suddenly finds himself perhaps a little expendable.

Hayden certainly hasn’t played like a first-round pick, and the Raiders would do well to trade him this offseason. Even if they can only snag draft picks for him, as the team continues rebuild and retool, those draft picks would be critical to a team in need an infusion of young blood.

Kevin Saito is a fiction writer, sports junkie, history nerd, and NFL contributor to www.RantSports.com Follow him on Twitter, Facebook, or on Google

 

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