Oakland Raiders: 4 players who must be better in 2019

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OAKLAND, CA – DECEMBER 02: Tahir Whitehead #59 of the Oakland Raiders celebrates after a play 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) /

Tahir Whitehead

One of the bigger free agent acquisitions for the Raiders last year was linebacker Tahir Whitehead, who proved himself to be a tackling machine during his time with the Detroit Lions. Whitehead was fresh off his second consecutive 100-tackle season in Motown, and the expectation was that he would be the leader of the linebacker group in Oakland.

However, Whitehead got off to a rough start in the Silver and Black, struggling in coverage, and looking lost at times. However, from Week 10 on, he became one of the better linebackers in the AFC, racking up tackles in bunches, and finishing the year with over 100 tackles for the third straight season.

His 126 tackles were the second-highest total of his career, and in 2019, he will be expected to build on his second half success. Oakland has brought in a bunch of veterans for the linebacker group in 2019, including Brandon Marshall and Vontaze Burfict, so this could be one of the better units we have seen in a while for the Raiders.

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