In their last year in Oakland, the Raiders put together a decent season, finishing 7-9. While they had impressive wins over the Indianapolis Colts and Chicago Bears, the Raiders missed the playoffs for the third straight year.
In fact, the Raiders made the playoffs just one time in 2010s, losing to the Houston Texans in the Wild Card round.
As the 2020 season approaches, the Raiders will be leaving Oakland and moving to Las Vegas. Fans are hoping that the change of scenery will lead them back into the postseason. The newest Las Vegas franchise has a lot of ammo to make that dream a reality. The Raiders have two first round picks in the NFL Draft and just over $62 million in cap space.
Bringing with them to Las Vegas, the Raiders also have young talent on both sides of the ball. Rookie running back Josh Jacobs and tight end Darren Waller impressed on offense whereas defensively defensive ends Maxx Crosby and Clelin Ferrell have the talent to be quarterback wrecking balls.
With the right moves this offseason, it's extremely likely that the Raiders could find themselves back in the playoffs. The front office just has to make the right decisions. While the Super Bowl has still yet to be played, it'll be a long time before the 2020 Raiders take the field in Las Vegas for the first time. However, a new home should mean new opportunities.
As the Raiders look to bring a winning culture to Las Vegas, making the postseason will be priority number one.
Sign/Trade/Draft a Number One Wide Receiver
All Raider fans are aware of the Antonio Brown saga. After trading a third and fifth-round pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Brown fizzled out in Oakland and did not appear in a game for the franchise.
Since then, Brown has been embroiled in controversy. He has been accused of sexual assault and recently posted a video of him berating police officers in front of his children. Even his own agent doesn't want to work with him.
While Brown's numbers on the field are undoubtedly great, his off-field antics weren't worth it for the Raiders. In his place, free agent signing Tyrell Williams took over as WR1.
Williams caught 42 passes for 651 yards and six touchdowns. His numbers aren't necessarily bad, but it's clear the Raiders need more talent in the passing game.
The Raiders threw for 4,110 yards last season, good for 12th in the league. However, take away the yards to tight ends Darren Waller and Foster Moreau as well as running backs Jalen Richard, DeAndre Washington and Josh Jacobs and that number drops to 2,010, good for last in the NFL.
Adding receiving talent will be one of this offseason's biggest tasks for the Raiders. The team has three ways in which they should acquire that new star receiver.
Sign
When it comes to free agent wide receivers, the best available is Amari Cooper. However, Cooper is unlikely to leave the Dallas Cowboys either through a franchise/transition tag or a long-term extension. That being said it would be unlikely to see Cooper return to the Raiders after they traded him for a first round pick last season.
Another option is A.J. Green. Green sat out the entire 2019 season with an ankle injury. The problem with signing the lifelong Bengal is that Green has stated he wants to be in Cincinnati and the franchise may have no choice but to re-sign him to pair with new quarterback Joe Burrow.
From there, the wide receiver free agent class dips off. Players like Breshad Perriman and Travis Benjamin are interesting, but likely not capable of being a WR1. The other WR FA who does is that of Emmanuel Sanders.
Sanders spent time with both the Denver Broncos and San Francisco 49ers in 2019 and caught 66 passes for 869 yards and five touchdowns.
Sanders is just three years removed from a Pro Bowl season and has three 1,000 yard campaigns to his name. He undoubtedly would bolster the Raiders' receiving core.
It would just be an odd move to dish out big money to a going on 33-year old receiver who has struggled with injuries in the past.
Another option is Robby Anderson, who the Raiders have been enamored with in the past. However, after serving as a boom-or-bust option with the Jets in 2019, could he function as a true WR1 in Las Vegas?
Trade
If signing Sanders or Anderson doesn't seem like the Raiders cup of tea, perhaps trading for a top tier receiver could become an option. The team does have two first round picks in the draft.
The most obvious candidate is Odell Beckham Jr. of the Cleveland Browns. Rumors were swirling during the season that Odell wanted out of Cleveland. He would certainly give the Raiders their WR1, but this situation seems all to similar to the AB saga.
OBJ made a fool of himself following the LSU-Clemson championship game, handing out "fake" money to LSU players following the win and then getting into legal trouble by slapping a cop's ass. Like AB did, he provides enormous value, but he may not be worth the trouble.
The problem is outside of OBJ, there isn't many bonafide stars that could take over as WR1. Perhaps the Raiders could look to another team that recently moved in the Los Angeles Rams.
With the team struggling in 2019, perhaps they are more willing to trade Robert Woods or Brandin Cooks to free up cap space. The Raiders would take on a big salary but gain a field stretching FA who would open up lanes for Josh Jacobs. Assuming that either is healthy of course.
Another option is Corey Davis from the Tennessee Titans. He certainly wouldn't be the team's WR1 as he struggled mightily during the 2019 season. However, it appears the Titans are moving forward with A.J. Brown as their WR1. If the Raiders could get him for a late round pick, Davis could be a major low-risk high-reward reclamation project for the Raiders.
Draft
Perhaps the most realistic way to fix their wide receiver room comes via the 2020 NFL Draft. The Raiders hold both the 12th and 19th overall picks.
Walter Cherepinsky of WalterFootball.com has the Raiders taking Oklahoma receiver CeeDee Lamb with their 12th pick while Charlie Campbell of the same site has Las Vegas taking TCU receiver Jalen Reagor with their 19th in a separate mock draft.
Jason McIntyre of Fox Sports has the Raiders taking Lamb with the 12th pick.
Furthermore, Josh Edwards of CBS Sports has the Raiders grabbing Tee Higgins from Clemson with the 19th overall pick.
Whether it be Lamb, Reagor, Higgins or perhaps Jerry Jeudy in a trade-up, the 2020 NFL Draft is full of wide receiver talent. The Raiders should have no problem finding a play-maker at the position.
What will be key for the Raiders is finding the right wide receiver. If they chose to use the 12th pick at the position, Lamb seems to be the safest option. He impressed with the Sooners this season, catching 62 passes for 1,327 yards and 14 touchdowns.
Make a Final Decision on Derek Carr's Future
Raiders' quarterback Derek Carr has been a bit of a question mark in terms of fit with the organization since Jon Gruden stepped in as head coach.
He is the franchise's all-time leader in passing yards and helped bring the team back to relevancy. However, for now he has just been a middle of the pack QB. Some fans/pundits wonder if Gruden and General Manager could move on from the Fresno State product.
If they were to do so, this offseason would be their best opportunity. Carr still has three years left on his contract. However, releasing him this offseason would create just $5 million in dead cap compared to the almost $28 million it would last season.
In 2019, Carr completed 70.4 percent of his passes for 4,054 yards and 21/8 TD/INT ratio. He averaged 7.9 yards per throw. The interceptions thrown were a new low for Carr and the yards were a career high. His passing yards ranked eighth among all quarterbacks. However, Carr's 21 passing touchdowns ranked just 19th, tied with Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Gardner Minshew.
He's also coming off a a 2018 in which he threw for just 19 touchdowns compared to 10 interceptions. The year before Carr threw for his second lowest total of yards in a season. It's not that Carr is bad, it's just he is a middle of the pack quarterback that has yet to find real playoff success.
Carr's play leads to speculation from fans and media members alike. CBS Sports Jason La Canfora reported that the Raiders have considered moving on from Carr in December of last year.
Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal wrote a piece in December asking the question if the Raiders should move on from Carr.
Even dating back to last year's draft, many had mocked and picked the Raiders as the favorite to land former Oklahoma QB Kyler Murray.
This offseason, those rumors need to be put to bed. Either Las Vegas needs to stick by Carr and work at building around him, or draft a quarterback in the first round and start new at the position.
Either could be the right answer. It isn't like Carr is a total failure. But if the Raiders become enamored with a quarterback in the draft, they cannot waffle on whether or not to pull the trigger.
Fans have been waiting for an answer and the organization must deliver. Another offseason of rumor and speculation about Carr's future is not going to benefit the team.
As they enter 2020, the Raiders must be 100% invested in Derek Carr as their quarterback of the future, or be prepared to move on by selecting a signal caller in the first round.
Sign Byron Jones in Free Agency
The Raiders' secondary had a very interesting 2019. The team lost first-round pick Johnathan Abram to an injury before the year started and then traded starting cornerback Gareon Conley to the Houston Texans mid-way through the season.
Overall, the Raiders allowed the eighth most passing yards in the league with 4,107 and finished 25th in passing yards per game with 256.7. The 33 passing touchdowns they allowed ranked 28th whereas their nine interceptions 29th.
The Raiders have to be better at stopping the pass in 2020. Although, despite the poor stats, they did get a solid season out of rookie Trayvon Mullen.
Mullen appeared in all 16 games for the Raiders and started 10. He amassed 48 total tackles, intercepted one pass and defended 10 passes total. Mullen improved as the season went on and appears locked in as a starter heading into 2020.
The question becomes, who plays opposite of him?
Daryl Worley, who started 15 games last season, is a free agent this offseason. The Raiders could bring him back, as he showed the ability to play both corner and safety. Worley is also just 24-years old.
However, even if the Raiders do bring back Worley, they should be looking to make a splash in the secondary. That splash should come in the form of former Dallas Cowboys defensive back Byron Jones.
Jones was recently ranked as the 12th best free agent in the 2020 class by NFL.com. Last season he made 44 tackles and forced a fumble in 15 games. For his career he has 347 tackles, three forced fumbles and two interceptions, one returned for a touchdown.
He was ranked as the 17th best corner in 2019 by Pro Football Focus.
While Byron Jones somewhat lacks the fast-twitch movement that most top corners in the league possess, he relies on intelligent route recognition to play at a high level. After moving back to cornerback from safety, Jones has become a much more confident press man-to-man defender. His forced incompletion rate of 15.1% ranked 22nd among corners through Week 17, and he held opponents to a 22nd-ranked 11.0 yards per reception. Jones will undoubtedly be a coveted unrestricted free agent this offseason.
Jones may not be the biggest playmaker when it comes to turnovers, but he is a stout cornerback who would undoubtedly shore up the position for the Raiders. He provides a proven, veteran presence next to Mullen.
He could work as the Raiders CB1, locking up opponent's best receivers on game day. With wide outs such as Keenan Allen, Tyreek Hill and Cortland Sutton in the division, having a corner like Jones should pay dividends.
Jones also has the versatility the Raiders should covet. He could play both corner or safety. If they choose to use him at corner he could fill the aforementioned role. If the Raiders do bring back Worley, they could play Jones at safety next to Abram.
Jones is a proven cornerback at 27 years old and the perfect player to build the secondary around. If the Raiders give out one big free agent contract this offseason, it should be to Jones. With the Cowboys already locking up Ezekiel Elliot and Dexter Lawrence, and with Dak Prescott and Amari Cooper as free agents, Jones should walk in free agency.
If so, Las Vegas gives Jones the opportunity to be a star in the secondary.
Use the 19th Overall Pick on Kenneth Murray
While wide receiver is arguably the Raiders most-needed position, linebacker isn't far behind. Right now the Las Vegas linebacking core is a mess.
The core of Tahir Whitehead, Will Compton and Nicholas Morrow simply didn't do enough in 2019 to be locked in starts going into 2020. While Whitehead is a team leader, cutting him would save $6.25 million and is a real possibility.
Compton shined in moments throughout the season and could be brought back on a cheap deal. Although a starting role is far from a given.
The Raiders did lose Vontaze Burfict due to suspension. If he is in their plans for 2020 he would help shore up the position. However, it's hard to trust a guy who always seems like one step away from out of the league.
Las Vegas needs to truly invest in their linebacking core. They have to add a young player to build around at the position. They have Clelin Ferrell and Maxx Crosby on the line and Trayvon Mullen and Johnathan Abram in the secondary. Adding a versatile linebacker would help a position in desperate need of help as well as give the team a core building block in all three phases of the defense.
Isaiah Simmons out of Clemson would be a perfect fit for the Raiders. However, it's unlikely he falls to the 12th pick.
Instead the Raiders could use the 12th pick on a brand new WR1 and land another strong linebacker at 19 in the form of former Oklahoma Sooner Kenneth Murray.
Last season, Murray racked up 102 tackles, 17 for a loss and four sacks. He was named First-Team All Big 12 in 2019 and was the Big 12 Defensive Freshman of the year in 2017. Murray also holds the record for most tackles in a game with 28, a number he recorded in 2018 against Army.
Murray is a dominant force in the middle of the field. He plays with both speed and tenacity and always seems to be around the ball. He is the type of field general the Raiders could use at linebacker.
While he has speed, he is also patient enough to work as a QB spy and force the thrower to get out of the pocket quicker than usual.
Murray has the speed and natural football IQ to succeed in the NFL. The Raiders desperately need to upgrade their linebacker position. The former Sooner should be the guy to fix it.
Sign Defensive End Robert Quinn
Obviously signing another high-end free agent or making a high-profile trade would immediately boost the Raiders' playoff chances. However, it's important to be realistic as to what they actually might do. Signing another former Cowboy in the form of Robert Quinn makes sense for all parties.
As mentioned earlier in this piece, Quinn's former defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli is likely the next defensive line coach of the Raiders. Due to the success Quinn had under Marinelli in 2019, it might make sense for the defensive lineman to meet back up in Las Vegas.
Now of course, Clelin Ferrell and Maxx Crosby are the two likely starters at defensive end in 2020. One was the fourth overall pick in the draft whereas the other over-performed in 2019 and amassed 10 sacks.
That being said, that doesn't mean the Raiders shouldn't add more firepower to their pass-rushing room.
Last season the Raiders racked up 32 sacks, which was a huge improvement from their 19 in 2018. However, the team still ranked just 25th in the league in that department. If the Raiders want to increase their sack total again in 2020, Quinn is the kind of player who could fit that bill.
In 2019, Quinn played and started 14 games for the Cowboys, racking up 11.5 sacks. His sack total ranked tied for ninth in the NFL.
Quinn has been in the NFL for nine seasons. In every year in which he has played at least 10 games, Quinn has racked up at least five sacks. His 11.5 in 2019 were only second to the unworldly 19 he put up in 2013.
Quinn earned $8 million from the Cowboys last season, so fans should expect a contract around that area in 2020. While that number could go up due to this strong play, it shouldn't be much higher than $10 million. It will undoubtedly be lower than players such as Jadeveon Clowney, Bud Dupree and Matt Judon.
The former Cowboy fits in perfectly into the defensive end rotation. As Crosby and Ferrell mature, Quinn could help mentor them while providing positive stats. At just 30, he has plenty of gas left to make a difference on the field while allowing the Raiders' young studs to grow.
Quinn would be reuniting with his old coach on an up-and-coming team in a brand new city in a world class stadium. The Raiders would be getting a solid veteran pass rusher to pair with two risers a the position.
If Las Vegas wants to improve their sack total, there might not be a better option value-wise.
