The Las Vegas Raiders didn’t honor Jakobi Meyers’ trade request before the season. But with the playoffs out of earshot, they finally dealt the wideout before the deadline.
Meyers is headed to the Jacksonville Jaguars, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who reported Tuesday that the Raiders will receive fourth- and sixth-round picks in return for Meyers.
The move comes just days after the Jaguars defeated the Raiders 30-29 in Week 9. The Raiders scored 29 points in the loss, but Meyers wasn’t a major factor, gaining just 23 yards on four catches.
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The deal also comes after the Jaguars announced promising rookie Travis Hunter would miss at least four games due to a knee injury. Hunter, who has played both wide receiver and cornerback with the team, was placed on injured reserve ahead of the team’s game against the Raiders. He will miss at least three more games due to that injury, but could miss more time depending on his recovery.
Meyers was in the final year of his three-year, $33 million contract with Las Vegas. He had signed with the Raiders in 2023 after spending four seasons with the New England Patriots, who originally brought him aboard as an undrafted free agent out of North Carolina State.
Despite Meyers posting a 1,000-yard receiving season in 2024, the Raiders didn’t extend him ahead of the 2025 campaign. Leading up to a Week 8 bye, the soon-to-be-29-year-old Meyers told reporters that he “for sure” still wanted to be traded, but also that he would remain professional about the situation.
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At that point, Meyers was tied for the team lead with 29 catches. He trailed only wideout Tre Tucker in receiving yards with 329 in six games. He missed a 31-0 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 7 with knee and toe injuries that he picked up in a win over the Tennessee Titans the previous week.
The Raiders have only two victories on the year so far. In addition to beating the hapless Titans, they staged a season-opening road win against Meyers’ old team, the Patriots.
New England and Las Vegas have gone in opposite directions since that Week 1 meeting, with Mike Vrabel turning the Pats into AFC East contenders.
Pete Carroll’s first year at the helm in Vegas, on the other hand, hasn’t gone according to plan. Perhaps most notably, the Raiders’ offense, coordinated by Chip Kelly, has yet to take off.
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Quarterback Geno Smith hasn’t picked up where he left off with the Seattle Seahawks. Rookie running back Ashton Jeanty hasn’t necessarily hit the ground running. And tight end Brock Bowers missed time with a knee injury.
Now the Raiders are moving on from their top wideout from a year ago.
Meyers is searching for his fifth straight 800-plus-yard receiving season. After Tuesday’s trade, he’ll try to reach that mark with the Jaguars.
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