Free Agency: Should the Oakland Raiders try for Brandon Marshall?
By Brad Weiss
The Oakland Raiders have an obvious need for an inside linebacker for the 2019 NFL season, and they may want to bring on a former AFC West foe.
The Oakland Raiders have a bunch of holes to fill on their roster this offseason, including one in the middle of Paul Guenther’s 4-3 defense. If the defense is going to take a step forward in 2019, they need a quality inside linebacker, and they may be able to stay in the AFC West to get one.
Brandon Marshall said goodbye to the Denver faithful on Friday, as the team is not likely to pick up the rest of the years on his contract. That means he will become a free agent on March 13, and based on his production when he is in the lineup, he would be a nice fit in the Silver and Black.
Marshall has been limited in two of the past three seasons due to injuries, as he has had issues with his ankle and knee. When healthy, he is a dominant force on the inside, and is still only 29-years old, which means he still has a couple of very good years left in him if he is healthy.
When he is healthy, Marshall has proven to be a tackling machine, going over 100 tackles in three of his five full seasons with Denver. The only time he has not gotten to 100 tackles was when he missed time, including playing in 11 games in 2016, and only seven this past season.
Oakland had to roll with an undrafted free agent on the inside towards the end of the season, and you can be sure they are going to try and upgrade this position for the 2019 campaign. There are some solid names available in free agency this year, including C.J. Mosley, Kwon Alexander, and Cory Littleton, but Marshall could come on the cheap after missing time in two of the last three seasons.
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Of course, if he is healthy heading into this offseason, the Raiders have to at least take a look, as they need to seriously revamp this position group this season. Marshall is one of the more talented linebackers in this free agency class, and if the Raiders can get the right price, why not roll the dice on him.