Oakland Raiders have in-house options at left guard
By Brad Weiss
The Oakland Raiders have one position along their offensive line up for grabs this summer, and they may have to choose one of the options they have in-house.
Early in the 2019 offseason, the Oakland Raiders swung a deal with the New York Jets in exchange for some cap relief, and draft capital. In order to get those two things, they had to part ways with one of the better offensive linemen on the roster, sending left guard Kelechi Osemele east to the Jets.
With Osemele gone, the Raiders have tried to look at options in terms of replacing him along the offensive line, which is going to be hard to do. During his time in the Silver and Black, Osemele went to two Pro Bowls, and established himself as one of the better left guards in the AFC.
Looking at this current roster, the Raiders do have some options in-house in terms of replacing him for the 2019 season. One option could be to move Gabe Jackson to the left side, after playing on the right side the past couple of seasons, but Jon Gruden seems content on keeping him on the right.
During the 2019 NFL Draft, the Raiders needed to address this need, but they did not, though they did add a stellar option after the draft ended. Lester Cotton is an absolute mauler, and though he was only signed as an undrafted free agent out of Alabama, he has a legitimate shot to make this team out of camp.
Denzelle Good seems to be locked in as the LG1 to start the summer, and he will have every opportunity to keep the job moving forward. He is a solid guard, and has starting experience, as he did start three games last season when injuries ravaged this offensive line.
In addition, guys like Jordan Devey, who has started before, Chaz Green, and Denver Kirkland will all be fighting for this spot during the summer months.
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Now there is still a chance the Raiders look outside the organization to fill this vacant starting job, as there is still talk of them bringing in former Pro Bowl guard Ritchie Incognito. For now, we have to focus on what the team actually has on their roster, and if the season started tomorrow, there are some solid options in-house.