Will the Oakland Raiders play the veterans at linebacker?

With new talent on both sides of the ball, the Oakland Raiders roster is much-improved over last season, even at the linebacker position.

The Oakland Raiders have added more talent to the linebacker corps this off season, adding vets such as Vontaze Burfict and Brandon Marshall. Burfict was one of the most publicized signings of the Raiders, as Burfict has a ton of controversy surrounding him.

Other linebackers on the Raiders include Tahir Whitehead, Marquel Lee, James Cowser, Jason Cabinda, and Nicholas Morrow. The Raiders finally have depth on their roster, with both young up and comers, and older vets. The Raiders are taking a young approach to most of their starting positions, but the linebacker corps could be a different story.

With the signings of Marshall and Burfict, it will be hard to imagine either of them not starting. Neither of them are too old, with Burfict being 28 and Marshall being 29, but both have been playing for some time.

Burfict has been in the NFL since 2012, playing at a high level the entire way. The only issue with Burfict is if he can stay on the field. The Raiders will start Burfict until he does something that takes him off of the field. Hopefully that does not happen, because when Burfict is on the field, he is a force to deal with.

Brandon Marshall has been in the NFL since 2012, and has been a part of some incredibly successful Broncos defenses. Marshall was not on the field all that often last season, which could be a big reason the Broncos let him go. There is nobody on the Raiders roster I see that will start over Marshall on the inside.

Tahir Whitehead is another player who has been in the NFL since 2012, and he has posted over 100 tackles in each of his last three seasons. It is hard to see Whitehead not on the field often, especially after recording 126 tackles last season for the silver and black.

The Raiders typically run a defense with three linebackers on the field, and I believe Burfict and Marshall are locks for two of those spots. With the question being if the Raiders will start their vets at linebacker, I believe the answer is a sure yes for at least two of the spots. Even if they play Whitehead in the same spot that many believe Marshall will play, it is still a vet in that spot.

For one of the outside linebacker spots, a young guy could slide in such as Marquel Lee. Many of the players on the Raiders roster have never played in a 4-3 defense, so it may come down to whoever learns the system the quickest, not whoever the best overall player is. The Raiders need to find a way to have a mixture of toughness, speed, and the ability to cover receivers.

The Raiders will most likely play all three vets, going with Whitehead, Marshall, and Burfict. All three of these players have proven that they can compete at a high level in the NFL, and their experience should make it easy for them to learn how to play together.