Oakland Raiders: Rashaan Melvin could be the odd man out

The Oakland Raiders brought Rashaan Melvin in on a one-year deal this past offseason, and he may be the odd man out of the rotation in 2019.

Last season, the Oakland Raiders signed cornerback Rashaan Melvin to a one-year deal, as he was coming off a solid season as a corner for the Indianapolis Colts. Expected to be a starter alongside of Gareon Conley, Melvin nearly played his way off the roster, and could be looking for a new home in 2019.

In fact, on Wednesday ESPN listed Melvin as the player on the Raiders who needs a change of scenery in 2019. He has bounced around the NFL, playing his best ball for the Indianapolis Colts in 2017, but his first season in Oakland was nothing to write home about.

During the season, Melvin made noise in the media when he said he was going to go back to what he knows best. Head coach Jon Gruden did not like that, and talked about how Melvin was with his seventh team, and maybe he was confused.

Eventually, Melvin started playing better, and was a key part of the Raiders defense. With Gareon Conley stepping into a true shutdown cornerback role, and young players like Daryl Worley and Nick Nelson expected to be part of the position group moving forward, the Raiders could very well show Melvin the door after only one season in the Bay Area.

Worley, like Melvin, is a free agent this offseason, and should have a market for his services. Nelson was a fourth round pick of the Raiders in the 2018 NFL Draft, and showed some flashes as a rookie, so he is not going anywhere.

Oakland has a bunch of early draft picks this April, and they could very well use one of their first four selections on a cornerback. There are a couple of first-round talents in this draft class, including guys like Greedy Williams from LSU, DeAndre Baker from Georgia, and Byron Murphy from Washington, all of whom would be a nice fit in the Raiders defense next season.