Projecting the Raiders 53-man roster after minicamp

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OAKLAND, CA – OCTOBER 19: Alex Smith No. 11 of the Kansas City Chiefs is rushed by Khalil Mack No. 52 of the Oakland Raiders at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on October 19, 2017 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

Defensive End

Khalil Mack, Bruce Irvin, Arden Key, Tank Carradine

One of the focal points of this offseason for the Raiders was to bolster the interior of the defensive line to take some of the pressure off of Khalil Mack. Since coming into the league in 2014, Mack has solidified himself as one of the best defensive players in the NFL, and entering his prime years, he is only going to get better.

In addition to the bolstering of the defensive tackle position, Mack should also get some help this season due to the fact that Bruce Irvin is making the full-time move to defensive end. Irvin is much better suited as a pass rusher, and having both Mack and Irvin on the edges is going to give the Raiders one of the better pass rushes of any team in the AFC West.

In the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft, the Raiders used one of their two picks on the defensive end position as well. The last of the draft picks to sign, Arden Key is going to make an impact on this roster in year one, serving as quite the backup for Mack and Irvin. He is an elite talent at getting after the quarterback, and I would not be surprised if he got 5-to-8 sacks this season.

Tank Carradine was a nice free agent pickup for this position group, and he will make the team as the fourth defensive end this summer. In all, this unit has the potential to be one of the best in the league, and if the defensive tackle position takes a step in the right direction, the Raiders are going to be very dangerous up front in 2018.

* denotes if Vanderdoes is healthy, Hester misses cut.

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