Oakland Raiders: 11 non-rookies who need to be a part of the rebuild

By Brad Weiss | Nov 27, 2018

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - NOVEMBER 25: Quarterback Derek Carr #4 and tight end Jared Cook #87 of the Oakland Raiders celebrate after a touchdown in the third quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on November 25, 2018 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

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OAKLAND, CA – SEPTEMBER 10: Tahir Whitehead #59 of the Oakland Raiders reacts to a play against the Los Angeles Rams during their NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on September 10, 2018 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

Tahir Whitehead

When the Raiders signed Tahir Whitehead this offseason, the expectation was that he would be the leader of the linebacker group in 2018. However, he got off to a rough start to his career with the Silver and Black, and was an absolute liability in the passing game.

In the previous weeks, Whitehead has really turned his season around, and had his best effort of the season this past weekend against the Baltimore Ravens. He led all players with 14 tackles, and is starting to show that kind of prowess at the position that made him such an exciting signing this summer.

Whitehead is locked up for the next two seasons if the Raiders want to keep him, and I believe they should. Good linebacker play is hard to come by, and now that he is getting comfortable in Paul Guenther’s system, they should keep him around, as he is only going to be 30 years old at the end of his contract in 2020.

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