Oakland Raiders: Lamarcus Joyner is a free safety, and should be used as such
The Oakland Raiders signed Lamarcus Joyner to boost their secondary, and they should use him where he is at his best.
Free agency is going crazy at the moment, and the Oakland Raiders have been right in the middle of the frenzy. With moves like the Antonio Brown trade, signing Trent Brown to a huge contract and signing Tyrell Williams, the Raiders made big moves on offense.
So far on defense, they have made one big signing, and that was bringing in former Los Angeles Rams safety Lamarcus Joyner. Joyner is coming off a bit of a down year in 2018 compared to his elite play in 2017 that earned him 90.9 grade from Pro Football Focus but is still a very talented and productive player. The Raiders are still in need of upgrades in the secondary so this is a worthwhile move on their part, but there is just one issue I see with the signing.
Joyner has been praised by many for his ability to play not only as a free safety but also as a slot cornerback, which is what he primarily did his first three seasons as a pro. He has excellent quickness and fluid hips, which allows him to change direction, which is necessary for the slot given the space a receiver has to work with.
This is what the Raiders tried to do with Marcus Gilchrist but did not find much success last season, so the hope is that Joyner is a much better fit. However, the Joyner who has become a productive player and has fans excited is not the one that played in the slot, but the one who is primarily a free safety.
Despite that, a report from Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal came out today that the Raiders intend to play him primarily at slot corner instead of at free safety.
Raiders plan to lean heavily on new safety Lamarcus Joyner as nickel cornerback, a role he occupied early in Rams career. Joyner also will see reps at safety. But he’s expected to be primary option at nickel where Leon Hall, Nick Nelson worked for Raiders in 2018.
— Michael Gehlken (@GehlkenNFL) March 13, 2019
Now Joyner is fully capable of being a slot corner, but the Rams got the most out of him during his time there playing deep. In the last two season where Joyner has been at his best, he’s played a total of 1358 snaps at free safety while only playing 178 snaps at slot corner.
I understand the intrigue with his versatility, but Joyner is a free safety first and should primarily be used as such. Putting Joyner in the slot just because he’s played it before lessens the player he has become over the last two season which is who the Raiders think they’re getting. And if you put someone at free safety that isn’t as good as Joyner, you’re not maximizing your defense at two positions.
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Perhaps Oakland knows something we don’t, but the numbers say Joyner is not a better player at the position they currently plan on using him at.
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