The Oakland Raiders needed help at the safety position heading into free agency, and they got a big-time player in Lamarcus Joyner.
The Oakland Raiders followed up the fantastic trade for Antonio Brown by bringing in another Brown. Offensive tackle Trent Brown that is, who was arguably the best available tackle in free agency.
The Raiders have a trend going for them by acquiring amazing talent and it didn’t stop there. The Silver and Black bolstered their secondary by signing Los Angeles Rams safety Lamarcus Joyner. The Raiders desperately needed to address the safety position since the position only composed of Karl Joseph and Erik Harris.
The Raiders didn’t just simply address it, they added a premier safety that immediately improves the defense. One of the huge positives from this signing is that it most likely means Reggie Nelson will not return. I’m sure Raider nation has no issues with that.
Contract details
Joyner signed a four year $42 million deal with $16.7 million in guaranteed money. A little under $12 million a year, the Raiders signed a stellar deal with Joyner, especially if he gets back into his 2017 form.
National reaction
The #Raiders are expected to sign for former #Rams franchise player, safety Lamarcus Joyner, sources say. A free safety that gives them speed in the secondary.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 12, 2019
Pound for pound, they don’t come much tougher than Lamarcus Joyner. #Raiders are getting a good, solid, hard nosed football player. And that’s looking like a fourth-round comp luck coming back to #Rams for 2020 draft
— Vincent Bonsignore (@VinnyBonsignore) March 12, 2019
Scout on new #Raiders safety Lamarcus Joyner “Really good cover safety. Instinctive. Solid on the back end. Issues all stem from lack of size. Think honey badger but little less playmaking”
— John Middlekauff (@JohnMiddlekauff) March 12, 2019
Grade
Lamarcus Joyner’s height is listed at 5’8, which makes him and Joseph the shortest safety duo in the league. On the surface, it looks foolish to have two short safeties. Not to mention that Joyner is coming off of a down year.
However, that’s mainly due to the fact that he was used more as a strict deep safety, which makes him a liability due to his height. Joyner is a versatile player that can play slot corner at a very high level. He’s the player the Raiders thought they were getting when they signed Marcus Gilchrist last season, except Joyner has actually proven to be elite when covering the slot.
So long as the Raiders use him in that role, which is why he was top player in 2017, Joyner will be a steal. This signing fills a huge hole at the safety position, but don’t think for one second the Raiders will be done adding players.