The Oakland Raiders acquired hybrid linebacker/defensive end Quentin Groves from the Jacksonville Jaguars. The trade is said to be for one of the Raiders two 5th round picks (7th and 27th in the round). No word yet on which of the two picks they gave up but with the high value that has been placed on 5th round picks in trades this offseason, it is most likely the lower selection of the two.
Groves was originally a second round choice (52nd overall) by the Jacksonville Jaguars out of Auburn in the 2008 draft. The Jaguars traded up six spots to get Groves who had tied an Auburn record with 26 sacks in his career with the Tigers. He was expected to be a pass rush specialist, but in two seasons in the NFL he only had 2.5 sacks and one interception, 2 of those sacks coming during his rookie season. In case you were wondering, Oakland didn’t have a 2nd or 3rd rounder in the ’08 draft although later in that draft they found a much more productive pass rusher in Trevor Scott.
Last season Groves played in every game for the Jags while starting 8 games and collecting just a half sack during that time. At just 260 pounds, he had difficulty shedding offensive tackles in the NFL. He was considered on the bubble to make the Jaguars 2010 regular season roster.
The Raiders are thin in the front seven, especially along the line. Groves will likely be competing with Jay Richardson for depth behind Matt Shaughnessy and Richard Seymour.
(Levi Damien contributed to this article)
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