Walker Signing a Huge Mistake for Raiders

The Oakland Raiders have already made two major mistakes this off season. Their first mistake was letting receiver Jerry Porter sign with another team. Their second mistake was attempting to replace him with a receiver who has missed 23 games over the past three seasons.

The Raiders reportedly will pay ex-Packers and Broncos receiver Javon Walker $55 million over the next 6 years. The deal, according to several sources, includes $16 million in guaranteed money and $27 million over the first three years.

While Walker has shown some flashes of talent, the lucrative deal really makes no sense.

Walker made the Pro Bowl in 2004 after catching 89 passes for the Packers and scoring 12 touchdowns. In the three years since that Pro Bowl year, he's caught just 99 passes for just 8 touchdowns.

A large part of the reason for that is the knee injury Walker suffered in the first game of the 2005 season; his last game with the Packers. He started all 16 games in his first season with the Broncos; 2006. However, he has missed as almost as many games over the past three seasons (23) as he has started (24). And, in the games he did play last season, his production dropped enough where the Broncos showed little hesitation to release him despite the fact they gave up a second round draft choice for him.

In theory, Walker could be a decent player for the Raiders. However, the knee injury leaves the receiver's speed in doubt for a team that prefers a vertical passing game and he will come to his new team with questions about whether he can even play a full season. For those reasons, the deal the Raiders gave him, which offers him more guaranteed money than what the Broncos offered him in 2006, is a huge mistake on the part of a team that finds itself drafting in the top 10 for the fifth straight year. It's a move that will likely come back to haunt them.