NFL Rumors: Khalil Mack Trade Part of Raiders Firing Reggie McKenzie
By NBC Sports Bay Area staff • Published December 11, 2018 • Updated on December 11, 2018 at 10:46 am
Reggie McKenzie seemed damned if he did and damned if he didn't as the Oakland Raiders' general manager.
Case in point: The infamous Khalil Mack trade to the Chicago Bears the week before the season opener.
The Athletic's Vic Tafur reported Monday in the aftermath of McKenzie's firing that the GM was against trading his star linebacker for a package centered on two first-round draft picks. However, the deal was part of the reason for his dismissal in what seems like revisionist history.
According to Tafur, coach Jon Gruden and owner Mark Davis didn't believe McKenzie pulled enough of a return from the Bears, who demanded a 2020 second-round pick from Oakland, too, when they realized the Raiders' desperation to move Mack.
The Jets and the 49ers were among the other teams involved in Mack trade talks. The Jets reportedly offered a 2019 first-round and a 2020 second-rounder, and were willing to go higher. 49ers GM John Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan both have said the team made an aggressive offer for Mack, although the exact package hasn't been reported.
[RELATED: Mack, Bears scheduled to visit Raiders in 2019]
In the end, it seems silly to blame McKenzie for one simple fact: Gruden supposedly has final say in all personnel decisions. So, instead of green-lighting the Mack trade, Gruden could have just objected to it and told McKenzie to go for more.
Instead, that trade, plus the one sending Amari Cooper to the Dallas Cowboys, were used as reasons for McKenzie's ouster. Seems unneccesary, when all the Raiders had to say is there's a new man in charge, and it's Gruden. No other explanation needed.
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