The Miami Dolphins acquired rookie offensive weapon Lynn Bowden Jr. from the Las Vegas Raiders for a Day 3 pick swap, the team announced Saturday. The Raiders receive a fourth-round pick from Miami while sending back a sixth-round selection.
Bowden, a third-round pick out of Kentucky who primarily played running back in training camp for the Raiders, may get a shot to play receiver in Miami. He was thought of as a versatile playmaker, potential slot receiver and returner coming out of the draft. Bowden played quarterback, slot receiver and running back in college -- and he had 1,816 yards from scrimmage in his final year.
Bowden also won the Paul Hornung Award for most versatile player in college football in 2019. He was one of five players in the past 10 seasons to lead his team in rushing yards and receiving yards.
This is the second time the Raiders and Dolphins have traded with each other over the past week. Miami traded linebacker Raekwon McMillan and a fifth-round pick to Las Vegas for a fourth-round pick. That same pick went back to Vegas in this deal.
Putting the two deals together, the Raiders receive McMillan and a fifth-round pick while the Dolphins receive Bowden and a sixth-round pick.
It's unclear how close Bowden is to playing meaningful NFL snaps, but beyond DeVante Parker and Preston Williams the Dolphins lack some depth in their receiving room, creating an opportunity for Bowden to eventually carve out a role. His most immediate contribution may be as a returner and a gadget player.
The Raiders, meanwhile, gave up on a player taken in the first three rounds of a draft who had yet to plan a down in the NFL for the first time since parting ways with third-rounder Quentin Moses in 2007.
In Bowden, the Raiders thought they had a Swiss Army Knife for coach Jon Gruden's offense. But in trying to transition from college quarterback and receiver to NFL running back, Bowden had a rough camp.
"Well, it's never easy," Raiders offensive coordinator Greg Olson said of Bowden's switch on Friday. "You talk to him about making that transition, really from high school to a wide receiver to playing quarterback at the University of Kentucky and then, you know, it's an entirely different game at this level. We brought him along slowly and we'll continue to do that and continue to find ways to use him in our offense."
Before the draft, Raiders general manager Mike Mayock relished the Raiders having three picks in the third round, saying, "That to me, three picks in the third, is just like stealing. If we're doing our jobs the right way, hopefully, that's three more starters."
Out of the Raiders' three third-rounders -- Bowden (No. 80 overall), WR Bryan Edwards (No. 81) and LB Tanner Muse (No. 100) -- only Edwards has a shot at starting for Las Vegas.
The trade of Bowden and the release of Theo Riddick gives the Raiders a running back room of Josh Jacobs, Jalen Richard, Devontae Booker and fullback Alec Ingold.
ESPN's Paul Gutierrez contributed to this report.