Report: Raiders to pursue QB Tom Brady if he becomes a free agent

Want to make a huge splash as you open a new stadium in a new city? Go out and sign the game’s greatest quarterback of all-time, should he become a free agent when the new league year begins.

This rumor has been going around now for the last couple of weeks following comments by UFC President Dana White, who is a close friend of Brady.

“Oh, now you want to talk about Tom Brady,” said White following UFC 246 in Las Vegas. “I thought when she asked me the question earlier, I thought you guys were going to ask me, hey Tom Brady was here, Davis (Mark) was here, I saw them talking, what’s going on? If that dude isn’t playing for Boston he’s playing here.”

Photos of Brady and Raiders owner Mark Davis striking a conversation at the MMA event made the rounds on social media and ever since people are linking Brady to the Raiders as a possible landing spot should he reach free agency.

The rumor gained more traction today when ESPN insider Adam Schefter tweeted out a report that the Raiders are poised to make a run at the six time Super Bowl champion, should the Patriots not re-sign him.

It would be an interesting move considering the youth movement occurring throughout the Raiders roster. Brady is 42, and for the first time in his career his skills looked to be diminishing last season.

It would be hard to imagine the Patriots not making a strong effort to bring Brady back. In fact Ian Rapoport reported the Patriots are willing to pay Brady $30 million per year to keep him.

Brady lacked weapons this past season in New England despite having one of the top defenses in the league. You can argue the Raiders weapons on offense offer him a better supporting cast. Certainly the offensive line would be an upgrade, while Josh Jacobs looks like the real deal, Darren Waller is a top five tight end in the league, Hunter Renfrow is the ideal Tom Brady slot receiver, and the Raiders just might draft another top-end receiver in the draft. Throw in Tyrell Williams and you have a fairly attractive offense.

The question you need to ask yourself should Brady become a Raider is, what do you do with Derek Carr? Keep him around as a back up at $20 million? Look to trade him? Cut him and eat $5 million in dead cap?

Don’t expect this story to die anytime soon. Brady’s impending free agency will dominate the conversation following the Super Bowl.