Silver Minings: Could the Raiders trade for Mac Jones?

Now that Derek Carr is officially a free agent, we can expect to see the Las Vegas Raiders get linked to just about every quarterback that hits the open market. Whether it’s Jimmy Garoppolo or Jacoby Brissett, pretty much everyone who has thrown a football while wearing a New England Patriots jersey will be tied to the Raiders given head coach Josh McDaniels’ background.

One name that has been thrown around as a potential target for Las Vegas is Mac Jones. After throwing for 3,801 yards and 22 touchdowns and finishing second in the Offensive Rookie of the Year voting during his one season with McDaniels, Jones could be a decent option for the Silver and Black. He’s on a cheap rookie deal that would only cost about $4.25 million next season and the team can move on from him in two years if it doesn’t work out.

But would New England be willing to part ways with their young quarterback? The MMQB’s Albert Breer, who has covered the Patriots throughout his career, joined The Sports Hub’s “Zolak and Bertrand” last night to give his thoughts on the matter.

“I don’t think Bill appreciated the way that Mac handled some of the stuff last year,” Breer said. “There’s a way that I think Bill thinks a franchise quarterback should conduct himself. And for the most part, [Tom] Brady did conduct himself that way. I think there were certain things in the way that Mac handled his second year as a pro that Bill didn’t appreciate.

“I don’t know how in love the Raiders are with Mac. Like, if you’re talking about getting their first-round pick, I don’t think that’s happening.”

When asked if the Patriots would be willing to deal Jones after just two years, Breer responded:

“I think they would. Internally, I don’t know if they see this massive gap between Mac Jones and Bailey Zappe. I’m not saying they think Bailey’s as good as Mac, but there was some element of Bailey doing what he was coached to do last year that I think gave Bailey the edge to some degree for a little while there.

“So I think it’ll be interesting to see what would happen if a real offer came along. I don’t think a real offer is going to come along, but it’d be interesting to see what would happen if a real offer did come along.”

From the sounds of it, the Alabama product will be on the trading block if McDaniels is interested in a reunion.

In other Raiders’ links:

• Best and worst moments of Carr’s tenure: click here for the top highlights and here for the worst low-lights.
• Mock Draft roundup: find out who Las Vegas could replace Carr with in RaidersWire’s latest mock draft roundup.
• Feather in Vegas’ cap?: our Ray Aspuria dives into the Raiders’ free agency options now that they have some extra cap space.
• Mark Davis sells condo: the Las Vegas Review-Journal is reporting that the property went for $10.5 million, not bad for a condo.