Derek Carr wasn’t the only former member of the Las Vegas Raiders to join the New Orleans Saints this offseason — it turns out he was simply the first. After signing him in free agency, the Saints made moves to bring in several of Carr’s former Raiders teammates like defensive back Johnathan Abram, wide receiver Bryan Edwards and most recently tight end Foster Moreau.
Could slot receiver Hunter Renfrow be next? It’s a question we’ve asked before, and it’s worth circling back to. The Saints receiving corps is in a stronger position than it was this time last year, having added talented rookies A.T. Perry (Wake Forest), Shaquan Davis (South Carolina State) and Malik Flowers (Montana), along with veteran free agents in Edwards and James Washington. It’s a group that also has 2022 breakouts Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed on top with Michael Thomas returning from another injury. But there’s a case to be made in favor of acquiring Renfrow.
For one thing, he was one of Carr’s favorite targets when the Raiders were running Jon Gruden’s West Coast-style offense, which shares a lot of DNA with the Sean Payton-installed system in New Orleans. Renfrow lined up in the slot on 86%, 64%, 63% and 71% of his routes over the last four years and would be used in a similar role to Jarvis Landry last season, but with youth, athleticism and sure hands on his side. From a football fit, adding him as the primary slot would give Olave and Shaheed the flexibility to line up all over the formation while taking some pressure off Thomas to be the lone veteran presence in the lineup.
Carr looked his way often on third downs (converting a fresh set of downs on 58 of his 88 receptions, off of 118 career targets) and inside the red zone (scoring a touchdown on 15 of his 33 receptions inside the opposing 20-yard line, having drawn 45 career targets in that range), and there’s a lot of trust between the receiver and quarterback. If a play breaks down, Renfrow knows where his passer wants him to be.
What about the cost to acquire him? Let’s start with his contract. Per Over The Cap, the Raiders would save more than $11.2 million against the salary cap this year by trading Renfrow after June 1 while also clearing his $11.1 million salary from the books in 2024, which the Saints would be liable for as well as Renfrow’s $6.5 million salary in 2023. The Raiders already paid Renfrow’s $4.3 million roster bonus back in March, but the salary cap costs can be deferred to next year by waiting to trade him after that date on the NFL’s fiscal calendar.
The Saints are still under the salary cap by more than $14.2 million after signing most of their rookie draft class (second-round defensive end Isaiah Foskey is the last remaining player yet to sign) so they could easily absorb those costs for Renfrow outright, but a restructured contract could make sense too. Lowering his 2023 salary to the veteran minimum ($1.08 million) and paying the difference as a signing bonus prorated over five years would bring 2023 cap hit all the down to about $2.1 million while retaining cap flexibility for other moves. Whether that means signing an extension with defensive end Cameron Jordan or right guard Cesar Ruiz (or both), or bringing in more veterans, the Saints would have the means to do what they want.
What about the trade package? The Saints have five picks in the 2024 NFL draft and could offer their fifth- or sixth-round selections to the Raiders, or the sixth-rounder they got from the Philadelphia Eagles as part of the C.J. Gardner-Johnson trade last summer. They could also dig deeper in their pockets if the Raiders are willing to accept a pick from the 2025 or 2026 drafts.
There’s another point to consider here: Why would the Raiders trade away a good player? It’s a good question, and it’s not one they’ve done a great job of answering in parting ways with proven veterans like Carr and tight end Darren Waller this offseason while prioritizing anyone who conceivably made a Dunkin’ Donuts run for Tom Brady at some point in his NFL career. Head coach Josh McDaniels brought in former New England Patriots slot receiver Jakobi Myers to replace Renfrow in free agency, and reports out of Las Vegas suggest a split is brewing after June 1, when it becomes more financially tenable for the notoriously cash-poor Raiders. We could find out where Renfrow lands in about two weeks.
