10 things the Oakland Raiders need to do to reach Super Bowl LV

OAKLAND, CA - DECEMBER 02: Derek Carr #4 of the Oakland Raiders celebrates after a touchdown pass against the Kansas City Chiefs during their NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on December 2, 2018 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - DECEMBER 02: Derek Carr #4 of the Oakland Raiders celebrates after a touchdown pass against the Kansas City Chiefs during their NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on December 2, 2018 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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GLENDALE, AZ – NOVEMBER 18: Gareon Conley #21 of the Oakland Raiders celebrates an interception with Maurice Hurst #73 in the first half of the NFL game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on November 18, 2018 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images)
GLENDALE, AZ – NOVEMBER 18: Gareon Conley #21 of the Oakland Raiders celebrates an interception with Maurice Hurst #73 in the first half of the NFL game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on November 18, 2018 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images) /

Focus on the continued development for Conley and Joseph

The 2018 NFL season did not have many bright spots for the Oakland Raiders, but two of them were former first round picks of the team. 2016 first rounder Karl Joseph really stepped up at his safety position in 2018, while 2017 first rounder Gareon Conley became a shutdown cornerback late in the season.

The secondary has long been an issue for the Raiders, so the fact that these two very important pieces took a big step forward in their first season in Paul Guenther’s defense will go a long way in this defense being very good soon. There is a lot of work to do in regards to building depth around them, but having two solid defensive backs is certainly a good start.

With so much draft capital, and a bunch of cap space heading into this offseason, Oakland has to find a way to bring depth into the secondary. Losing defensive backs coach Derrick Ansley is going to hurt in 2019, but Conley and Joseph should emerge as leaders, and developing them is crucial to this Raiders organization moving forward.