Oakland Raiders 2019 Week 1 53-man roster projection

Defensive Line

Ends: Clelin Ferrell, Arden Key, Maxx Crosby, Benson Mayowa, Quinton Bell

Tackles: Maurice Hurst, Jonathan Hankins, PJ Hall, Justin Ellis

The defensive line is the positional group that the defense needs improvement from the most. They generated nearly zero pass rush last season. With that said, they spent two draft picks on defensive ends in round one and round four to upgrade the position.

Coming off the edge in 2019 will be Clelin Ferrell and Arden Key. Ferrell has an astronomical amount of hype surrounding him, as he was the fourth overall selection and Gruden has looked towards him to get these sacks numbers elevated. Key had a disappointing rookie season, but after an offseason of gaining weight and becoming stronger, the coaching staff is optimistic.

Maxx Crosby, Benson Mayowa  and Quinton Bell will rotate in off the edge. Crosby is a guy that a lot of people are talking about throughout training camp. Gruden says he may lead the league in effort and has complemented his fourth-round pick constantly. His ceiling could develop to be very high. Mayowa has spent six season in this league, two in Oakland (2014-16) but hasn’t been able to take off.

He’s hasn’t recorded many sacks, but is more of a force in the running game. Bell is a project in the making but has freakish athletic ability and if the Raiders can teach him proper technique, he may turn into something.

Defensive tackle is one group as a whole where everyone could really take a leap forward. Maurice Hurst and Jonathan Hankins looks to be the starters, whereas, PJ Hall and Justin Ellis will back them up. Hurst had a promising rookie season, and Guenther now looks to tap into that potential of his for an even better sophomore season. Hankins came in halfway through last season and was a force in run-stuffing opposing running backs.