Oakland Raiders: Trent Brown returns to right side, where he is elite
By Brad Weiss
The Oakland Raiders spent big money on Trent Brown this offseason, and he will return to the right side of the line, where he is an elite RT.
When the Oakland Raiders signed Trent Brown to a record-setting free agent deal early in free agency, the expectation was that he would become the team’s left tackle. Last season, as a member of the New England Patriots, Brown helped the Pats to a Super Bowl victory as their left tackle, where he had a standout season.
During the 2018 NFL Draft, the Raiders selected UCLA left tackle Kolton Miller with their first round pick, and he started on the left side his entire rookie season. Battling through injuries, Miller did not have the best rookie season, but when he was healthy, he showed he could be a solid left tackle at the NFL level.
In 2019, Miller will remain on the left side, and Brown will return to the right side, where he was once the best in the game. In fact, in August of 2017, Von Miller told the San Francisco Chronicle that Brown was the best RT in the league, and maybe a top-5 overall tackle, so he returns to a place where he has been elite before.
Last season, Oakland struggled mightily at the tackle spots, as Miller was oft-injured, but played through it, and fellow rookie Brandon Parker was thrown into the fire when Donald Penn could not go. The combination of Miller and Brown is a much-improved tandem, and star quarterback Derek Carr will benefit greatly from having both edges protected in 2019.
Oakland brought in a ton of offensive weapons in 2019, but they will not be able to flourish unless Carr has time to let plays develop downfield. The addition of Brown will help the Raiders accomplish that, and with the addition of a healthy, mentally and physically, Richie Incognito, this Raiders offensive line has a chance to be one of the best in the AFC this season.
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The bottom line is, there are good pass rusher on both edges nowadays, so the fact that Brown is on the right side does not diminish his worth to this Raiders offensive line. He has proven to be the best in the game at right tackle before, and should once again return to being elite in 2019 with the Silver and Black.