JBB’s Oakland Raiders Mailbag: Free Agency Edition

Free agency edition of JBB’s Oakland Raiders mailbag.

With free agency under way, the Oakland Raiders seem content to ride out the first wave. In the meantime, Raider Nation has plenty of questions.

Let’s jump right into the mailbag.

For the most part, it’s going to be fixed in the draft. It wouldn’t be surprising to see at least three of the first four picks in the draft address the defensive side of the ball, and maybe even six of the eight picks overall (Raiders have two 7th’s thanks to Seattle).

For example, the first round could yield Sidney Jones, Caleb Brantley, Haason Reddick or Obi Melifonwu, among roughly a dozen other options. The second round could have Marcus Williams, Jaleel Johnson or Raekwon McMillan, among several others. The third round could still have Kevin King, Tyus Bowser and others.

Drafting a defensive tackle, an inside and an outside linebacker, a cornerback, a safety and maybe one other player at any defensive position could go a long way in improving the defense.

In free agency, the Raiders could look to add lowkey options such as John Simon, Alex Okafor, Kevin Minter, Lawrence Guy, or Kayvon Webster. Not flashy names, but quality rotational guys and spot starters who are 27 or younger, that could develop further and become worthwhile additions.

The market for Murray’s has been unexpectedly quiet. He has a meeting with Seattle, but that’s about it so far. Through two days of the legal tampering period and the first official day of free agency, that may not be good news for his wallet.

Perhaps NFL teams are enamored with the running back class in the draft, and rightfully so. Thus, not much interest in paying big dollars for a player like Latavius.

With that being said, if the contract is reasonable (like $5 million per year), I could certainly see the Raiders bringing him back.

It may have been tight, but they probably could have made it work. Especially if they would have cut Reggie Nelson, and also because there have been some unexpected departures (Trawick, Bates, McGee), so they have more cap than most expected.

But it’s a moot point now that Hyde is in Buffalo. Perhaps an alternative could be signed, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Raiders will with Nelson while drafting a safety in an early-mid round.

Absolutely not. Next question.

Calais Campbell, Tony Jefferson, Brandon Williams, A.J. Bouye or any other big-name Raiders fans had on their wish list was never gonna happen.

A couple realistic names, like Micah Hyde and A.J. Klein, have been signed. But there are still plenty of candidates out there. As well as the draft, which should always be the primary way to build.

Just look at the Jaguars. They consistently “win” free agency and have nothing to show for it. Would you rather do that? Didn’t think so.

Hightower will likely end back up in New England. And even if he doesn’t, he’s not coming here. Too expensive.

Down to re-sign Latavius, if the price is right. As mentioned above.

Nah, gotta pass on signing Adrian Peterson. Draft a running back instead.

I tried to tell everyone, multiple times. Click below if you don’t believe me.

The Raiders aren’t going to make a splash in free agency.

Detailed cap projection, explaining how they don’t have as much money as you think.

Under the radar free agents.

Realistic signings.

I repeat — spending heavy in free agency is not the path to success.

Absolutely, it makes Andre Holmes more of priority. He surprisingly turned into an outstanding special teams player, and without Trawick and Bates, he becomes even more important in that regard.

The Raiders are in the mix to re-sign him, but there are other suitors. Reggie isn’t going to get into a bidding war, so we’ll have to wait and see.

In free agency, Bennie Logan and Johnathan Hankins are the two defensive tackles that stand out. Dontari Poe is available, but he’ll cost too much.

Logan and Hankins could also both be in line for handsome paydays themselves, but if not, either would be a great get. Tyrunn Walker and Sen’Derrick Marks are the best options that will be even less expensive.

The draft is filled with defensive tackles, though. Jaleel Johnson, Caleb Brantley, Chris Wormley, Montravious Adams and Jarron Jones, just to name a handful.

Michael Crabtree has slightly edged Amari Cooper in receptions and targets, so it’s not like Amari is the sidekick here.

In 2015, Crab had 13 more receptions, which is of course less than one per game. He had 16 more targets, which, of course, is exactly 1 more per game.

In 2016, Crabtree had only 6 more receptions and 13 more targets. Amari beat in him yards each season, but trailed in touchdowns.

Must Read: Why The Raiders Should Re-Sign Latavius

With that being said, I expect this upcoming year to be the season where that changes. Coop becomes top dog.