The Pittsburgh Steelers might be forced to cut quarterback Skylar Thompson after an impressive preseason, but there's at least one team they might be able to work out a trade with before doing so.
Thompson was the Steelers' most impressive quarterback during preseason play. He completed 41-of-56 passes for 498 yards and four touchdowns to one interception. Thompson's 116.5 passer rating was one of the highest of any quarterback in the preseason.
While some Steelers fans think Thompson could unseat Mason Rudolph as the QB2 behind Aaron Rodgers, that is not going to happen. The Steelers have too much faith in Rudolph to ditch him after a few poor preseason games.
That means the Steelers will have to keep a third signal-caller for Thompson to make the cut, but that spot is likely to go to rookie Will Howard, barring him starting the season on injured reserve because of his broken pinky.
If the plan is to cut Thompson, the Steelers are going to seek out a trade first, and the Las Vegas Raiders are a clear potential trade partner after Saturday night.
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In the Raiders' preseason finale, backup quarterback Aidan O'Connell suffered a fractured right wrist that will sideline him six to eight weeks.
That leaves the Raiders in need of a new backup, as the team only has sixth-round pick and rookie Cam Miller behind Geno Smith. Miller did show some promise in preseason play, but not enough to warrant the Raiders standing pat.
Thompson is an ideal target for the Raiders. Not only does he have experience, he's also going to come cheap, which is ideal for a Las Vegas squad that is still building and likely not keen on giving up any semblance of significant draft capital for a backup quarterback.
The Steelers should be able to garner a seventh-round pick for Thompson, which would amount to a win considering Pittsburgh is likely to cut him anyway.
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