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Lack of an impact pass rusher since negotiation Khalil mack at the Bears in 2018, the Raiders signed Yannick Ngakoue to strengthen their defensive end corps in March. However, before that deal was made, the team hatched a rather unusual plan.
Just before signing Ngakoue, the Raiders contacted the Bears to redeem Mack, Vic Tafur from The Athletic reports (subscription required). The Bears and Raiders both made cap-related moves this spring, each losing a few starters for financial reasons. The Raiders wondered if the Bears, who would soon be buying Kyle fuller before making him a cap victim, would send Mack back to them in the midst of their cap crisis.
In what was yet to be a fascinating phone call from the Bears’ side, they told the Raiders they weren’t interested in trading Mack, Tafur adds. Mack, now 30, is entering his fourth season with Chicago. The Bears’ best racing cogs – Mack, Robert quinn, Akiem Hicks – are all north of 30 now. But the team weren’t interested in what would have been one of the most interesting exchanges in modern NFL history, given the nature of Mack’s outing to Oakland three summers ago.
Raiders’ decisions to extend Derek carr and Gabe Jackson in the summer of 2017, while keeping Mack waiting – a common practice made possible by the fifth-year option included in first-round deals – angered Mack, according to Tafur. And the Raiders spending funds on lower profile free agents for Jon GrudenThe striker’s first months of return to power disturbed the passing thrower to the point that he severed contact with the team. The Raiders signed a slew of mid-level free agents in March – from Jordy nelson To Rashaan Melvin To Tahir Whitehead – and Marc davis said in 2018, Mack refused to speak to Gruden and the then CEO Reggie McKenzie go forward.
Davis cited Carr’s contract when asked if the Raiders could afford Mack, and Gruden noted that year that the Raiders’ offer of an extension to Mack was not close to the $ 141 million contract. over six years he signed with the Bears after the trade. The Raiders received two first-round picks, a third in 2020 and a sixth in 2019 for Mack. they wrote Josh jacobs and Damon arnette with the former, while the Bears have Cole Kmet with the second round of 2020 that they collected during the blockbuster of September 2018.
Mack, who is 3-for-3 at Pro Bowls with the Bears, is signed until the 2024 season. Pro Football Focus has ranked Mack as the No. 1 rider defenseman in 2020, despite his lower sack totals. (nine) and hits (13). The Bears ended up using Mack’s contract to create ceiling space, restructuring it around the same time the Raiders called. Relocating Mack before the 2023 offseason would result in significant dead money burdens for the Bears. On the Raiders’ side, they gave Ngakoue a two-year, $ 26 million contract. He will team up with Maxx Crosby and former general choice n ° 4 Clélin Ferrell, which hasn’t lived up to that draft window so far.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
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