Oakland Raiders: Would Signing Michael Crabtree Be Wise?

Free agent wide receiver Michael Crabtree is scheduled to meet with the Oakland Raiders this week, per several media reports – including Marc Sessler of NFL.com. The former San Francisco 49ers wideout is looking for a new home in the NFL after San Francisco declined to bring him back, and with other teams interested the Raiders will join a group looking at Crabtree as a possible upgrade to their wide receiving corps.

Sep 21, 2014; Glendale, AZ, USA; San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree (15) warms up prior to the game against the Arizona Cardinals at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

While its is uncertain whether Crabtree and Oakland can come to an agreement on a contract, or even if the Raiders will want to sign him at any price, it is clear that the silver and black need wide receiving help big time. They do not currently have anyone on the roster worthy of the “elite receiver” status and while Crabtree may not be considered one either by some experts, he has shown flashes of true greatness while playing in San Fran.

More from Las Vegas Raiders

His best season by far was in 2012 when he pulled in over 1,100 yards and nine touchdowns. He was also able to play all 16 games, which has only occurred three times in a six-year NFL career. Crabtree hasn’t exactly blown away anyone with amazing numbers; the problem is that it is hard to tell if that is his issue or a team offensive scheme issue. To be honest, the 49ers aren’t exactly known for their passing attack. The last three years have seen them rank 23rd, 30th and 30th, respectively, in the NFL passing offense.

The Raiders would have to throw some decent money his way as well. The Miami Dolphins have already offered him close to $3 million a year, per Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. Are the Raiders willing to take on that kind of contract, or even offer more money, to gamble on a player who is averaging numbers fairly similar to wide receivers they already have on their roster? That is a tough decision even for a team that has a lot of cap space to play with.

Will Oakland get the player that helped lead his team to Super Bowl XLVII in 2012 and came oh-so-close to a last-second touchdown to win the game? Or the guy that held out for a considerable portion of his rookie year because he felt he was owed Top 5 money? It’s an answer that might depend largely on the team and environment Crabtree comes into. But for the gamble to play off, he would need to produce those 2012 numbers on a fairly regular basis; a task that might be a heady one for Crabtree.

Crabtree and the Raiders both seem to come into this visit with some “upper hand” arguments. For Crabtree, it is obvious that Oakland is desperate for talent at the receiver position, and have been turned down by a lot of other good receivers. He also knows that time is running out for the Raiders to grab a difference maker at the position, something he obviously feels he has been in past seasons and will be for the team he plays for in 2015.

For the Raiders, they can lean on the fact that the market has dried up considerably for Crabtree in terms of big money. No one seemed to be that interested in paying him the money that guys like Randall Cobb or even Torrey Smith got. He is running out of options to get a decent deal, and can’t afford to mess around with un-realistic expectations at this point. The Raiders could play their cards right and end up with a former top ten pick still young enough to play for a while, and at the right price.

So what do you think? Is Crabtree worth a $3-$5 million dollar deal and will he be a difference maker in 2015? Take the poll and see if others agree with your assessment.

Next: Oakland Raiders Sticking With Youth At Cornerback

More from NFL Spin Zone

Home/Las Vegas Raiders