Raiders' Biggest Needs Ahead of NFL's Trade Deadline Are Painfully Obvious

The Las Vegas Raiders have looked for ways both big and small during this offseason and the early part of the 2026 regular season.

With the trade deadline approaching, below are the position groups the Raiders should consider trading for.

Offensive Line

The Raiders invested heavily in Tyler Linderbaum this offseason. He has already gotten the unit headed in the right direction, but Sunday confirmed that Las Vegas needs additional help along the offensive line. The Raiders started Caleb Rogers over Jackson Powers-Johnson on Sunday.

As expected, Rogers had his ups and downs. Kolton Miller, while still playing well overall, is not quite what he once was. The jury is still out on Spencer Burford. If the Raiders make a trade, finding additional help for their offensive line has to be at the top of that list.

The Raiders are thin at both guard positions. They lack dependable options behind their starting interior offensive linemen. Las Vegas does not know for sure whether the starters they currently have along the interior offensive line are dependable.

Las Vegas kept Cousins clean again on Sunday against the Bills, but still allowed several pressures. They also struggled to run the ball, partly because of issues along their offensive line. Kubiak shared his thoughts on the unit after the Raiders' Week 6 loss to Buffalo.

"I think Spencer has been a really great addition for our team. I think he's a guy that's continuing to improve. Overall, as an offensive line, I really like what we're doing protecting the quarterback,” Kubiak said the day after the game.

“I like how our quarterback's getting the ball out on time, and he knows Spencer and Tyler [Linderbaum] and Kolton [Miller] and DJ [Glaze] and Caleb [Rogers] and the whole offensive line knows that we have to improve in the run game blocking if we want to get to where we want to get.”

If the Raiders were to trade for a player, an offensive lineman would be nice.

Cornerback

The Raiders have a young defensive backfield they trust. Still, Las Vegas' front office and coaching staff knew that the position group was undoubtedly the roster's most vulnerable entering the season. If they were to make a trade, adding another cornerback would be ideal.

There are few, if any, position groups on Las Vegas' roster that a trade would make more sense for than a trade to boost their defensive backfield moving forward. Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak explained his thoughts on the group.

“I think the best advice you can give them is that you just keep playing. Especially as a defensive back, you're going to get beat, and when you get beat everybody in the free world is going to know it because it's on TV,” Kubiak said. 

“When a defensive lineman misses his gap, they're going to show the guy that missed the tackle. So, you got to have thick skin, and you got to move on to the next play. Just keep playing, keep competing,”

Wide Receiver

Veteran wide receiver Jalen Nailor returned to the Raiders' lineup on Sunday against the Bills. Tre Tucker had a solid overall day that was capped off by an impressive long touchdown pass from Cousins late in the game. Still, the unit leaves much to be desired.

The Raiders still sorely miss Jack Bech, and likely will aim to add another receiver or two next offseason. However, until then, wide receiver will continue to be an issue for Las Vegas unless something changes. If the Raiders were to trade, a receiver may be the top option on their list.

With Nailor back in the fold, Las Vegas' offense seemed to have much more of a chance of moving the ball and scoring points than they did without him in the field in Week 5. Kubiak explained how Nailor impacted the game despite his stats.

"He had targets. He got called on. We threw a double move to him, and they had a penalty on him. He caught a choice route. I thought Jalen [Nailor] was great to have him back. You could feel his presence out there and just got to keep finding ways to get him the ball because he's a really good player. He's a player that I'm counting on, that we're counting on, that's going to continue to ascend," Kubiak said.