What the Jakobi Meyers trade means for Jaguars and Raiders

Ahead of Tuesday's NFL trade deadline, the 5-3 Jacksonville Jaguars acquired receiver Jakobi Meyers from the 2-6 Las Vegas Raiders for fourth- and sixth-round selections inhe 2026 NFL draft.

Moving him wasn't a surprise, as Meyers was vocal about his desire to be traded.

Meyers is in the final year of a three-year, $33 million contract that he signed in 2023 and figures to help the Jaguars' injured receivers group in the short term after WR/CB Travis Hunter (knee) was placed on injured reserve last week. As for the Raiders, the trade helps them plan for the future.

But in the interim, what's next for the receivers room in Las Vegas?

NFL Nation reporters Michael DiRocco and Ryan McFadden detail how the deal might impact both teams the rest of this season.

How does Meyers fit in the Jaguars' offense?

Adding Meyers does one thing immediately for the Jaguars: It doubles the number of healthy players among the Jaguars' top six receivers. Which is a major reason why Jacksonville made the trade.

In addition, the Jaguars also needed a sure-handed addition to a group of pass catchers that lead the NFL in drops (19) and drop percentage (6.7%), per ESPN Research. Meyers has 11 drops in his seven-year career, which is fewer than all but eight receivers who have played at least 90 games since he entered the league in 2019.

Where he fits it in terms of the pecking order, however, will take a bit to sort out and it will largely depend on when Hunter returns from his knee injury. Hunter is required to miss at least the next three games against the Houston Texans (3-5), Los Angeles Chargers (6-3) and the Arizona Cardinals (3-5).

Other than Meyers, Parker Washington is the only other healthy receiver among the top six. Brian Thomas Jr. is dealing with shoulder and ankle injuries, Dyami Brown has a shoulder injury and suffered a concussion in last Sunday's game against the Raiders and Tim Patrick missed the game because of a groin injury.

That forced the Jaguars to call up Austin Trammell and Tim Jones from the practice squad before the Raiders game. Both contributed significantly -- Jones had a 15-yard catch on the Jaguars' game-tying drive at the end of regulation and Trammell had a 54-yard kickoff return to open overtime -- but the Jaguars would rather not have to rely on two players with a combined 26 career catches (20 with the Jaguars).

Meyers has only missed four games in his two-plus seasons with the Raiders, including most recently in a Week 7 matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs because of knee and toe injuries.

Meyers is expected to practice Wednesday, but how much he can play Sunday against Houston is unclear. When the Jaguars traded for cornerback Greg Newsome II on Oct. 8, he played only nine snaps in the Jaguars' Oct. 12 game against Seattle. And quarterback Trevor Lawrence has called Liam Coen's offense the most complex that he's ever learned.

The Jaguars began the season with Thomas as the No. 1 receiver, but he has struggled with drops and there have been several instances where he has appeared to shy away from contact and short-armed some passes. The Jaguars had moved Hunter into the No. 1 receiver role before their Week 7 game against the Los Angeles Rams, and he responded with career highs in catches (eight) and yards (101). However, Hunter suffered a non-contact knee injury during practice Thursday, and the team placed him on IR the following day.

Washington ended up leading the Jaguars in targets (nine) and catches (eight) Sunday, while Thomas had three catches for 55 yards on five targets before leaving the game in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury.

Meyers gives Lawrence one of the most sure-handed receivers in the league. Meyers' 11 drops have come in 98 games, and he has never dropped more than two passes in a season.

He is the most experienced and productive receiver on the roster, so he could compete to be the Jaguars' top receiver once he gets up to speed in the offense. If Hunter does return this season that could change.

What does the trade mean for the Raiders' offense?

Meyers was more than likely going to walk after the season, and the Raiders were able to look towards the future by increasing their draft capital. They have eight picks in April's draft, including a pair of fourths.

And with All-Pro tight end Brock Bowers fully healthy, Las Vegas might lean towards using 12-personnel (1 RB, 2 WR, 2 TE) more frequently, allowing the offense to handle Meyers' absence.

Offensive coordinator Chip Kelly said Meyers was an "impact player." But the on-field connection between quarterback Geno Smith and Meyers never found consistency. Through seven games this season, Meyers totaled 33 catches for 352 yards. His production has declined in recent weeks.

He averaged 31 yards per game in his last four games after averaging 76 in the first three weeks. Smith had four interceptions and a passer rating of 54.1 when targeting Meyers. At the same time, third-year wideout Tre Tucker (42 catches, 427 yards and four touchdowns) emerged as one of Smith's go-to targets.

With Meyers out of the picture, Kelly said it will take "multiple guys" to fill the void, referring to Tucker, Tyler Lockett and rookies Dont'e Thornton Jr. and Jack Bech.

"It's like a player got hurt, he's out of a game, then what do you do? It's the next guy's up," Kelly said.

Thornton and Bech will have no choice but to accept bigger responsibilities even though they haven't been productive thus far. Both players have combined for 12 catches for 167 yards on 29 targets.

Bech and Thornton have traits that the Raiders value. Bech can play inside and out and provides physicality, especially as a run blocker. Thornton is 6-foot-5 and has electrifying speed that gives him the upside of being a reliable downfield threat in the future.

But they have a steep learning curve. Bech has had a difficult time standing out since training camp. As for Thornton, wide receiver coach Chris Beatty said the rookie entered the league with a "blank canvas" since what he was asked to do at Tennessee has been completely different from the NFL.

"Both [Bech] and [Thornton] are coming along," Kelly said. "The transition for any rookie is difficult, whether you're an offensive lineman or a running back or a receiver, so those guys are giving us everything. They practice hard, so we'll continue to see how they develop."

Bowers' return to the lineup after his knee injury made it easier for Las Vegas to move on from Meyers. The Raiders have had Bowers healthy in just two games, and he dominated in both. In Week 1 against the New England Patriots, He had five catches for 103 yards. Against Jacksonville, he totaled 12 catches for 127 yards and three touchdowns.

The loss to Jacksonville provided a glimpse of what the offense could look like moving forward. The Raiders utilized 12 personnel on a season-high 58.3% of their plays. Third-year tight end Michael Mayer had three catches for 26 yards on seven targets -- tied for a season-best.

"We like [Mayer] on the field the same time Brock is out there and all of the flexibility that gives us," coach Pete Carroll said. "I don't think it could be more obvious how valuable Brock was to us [against Jacksonville] and how he was in the first game, too."

Another element to this is rookie running back Ashton Jeanty. If the Raiders can continue to incorporate Jeanty into the passing game, that will be beneficial for the offense moving forward.

"He's starting to evolve in that and trying to get him more involved in that way," Kelly said.