The Oakland Raiders brought in a bunch of new faces to their defense this offseason, but do they have a true leader entering 2019.
The talk surrounding the Oakland Raiders offseason in 2019 has been the acquisition of Antonio Brown. The seven-time Pro Bowl Wide Receiver definitely deserves the praise and excitement.
He is arguably a top-10 player in the NFL, and now paired with Derek Carr, has Raider fans in hysteria. There has not been a receiver this great on the Raiders since Tim Brown, sorry Amari Cooper, and with the Raiders also adding offensive tackle Trent Brown and wideout Tyrell Williams, the Raiders offense is now looking revamped and well improved.
But this begs the question, what about the defense?
This offseason was not all too quiet on the defensive side of the ball, as the Raiders did sign free safety Lamarcus Joyner, as well as linebackers Brandon Marshall and Vontaze Burfict. These were the names that highlighted the defensive free agent signings, and although these were all significant upgrades at lacking positions, only one of these players has ever been to the Pro Bowl, and that was Burfict only once in 2013.
The Raiders 2019 Draft class had no shortage of defensive picks either. With the first selection the Raiders took Clemson All-American defensive end Clelin Ferrell to shore up the lack of pass rushing, which had been a void since the departure of All-Pro Khalil Mack. With the 27th pick, the Raiders took hard hitting safety Johnathan Abram of Mississippi State. These picks would be followed by two cornerbacks, and two more defensive ends.
Despite the Raiders bulking up on defense in this draft, you do have to consider these are first-year players. There is a strong chance that one or two of them can be starters, but you can’t expect them to be a leader in the first season.
So this begs the question, is there an incumbent on the defense who can become this defense’s unquestioned leader? Perhaps it can be linebacker Tahir Whitehead, who led the Raiders in 2018 with 126 combined tackles. Or maybe it can be second year defensive tackle Maurice Hurst, whose four sacks led the Raiders last year, a number that also equaled the amount of sacks Khalil Mack had as a rookie.
Or can it be third year pro Corner back Gareon Conley? Maybe he is now ready to take on the role as a leader after making significant strides in his second season last year.
These are all questions that have no true answer, for all we know Arden Key can turn the corner and become a dominant defender and leader. With such a great offense, the Raiders and defensive coordinator Paul Guenther have a lot of catching up to do on the defensive side of the ball, but with a new cast of veteran and rookie talent alike we might just all be in for a surprise.