The Oakland Raiders needed to do something to bolster the offensive tackle position this offseason, and they did all of that and more in signing Trent Brown.
When the Oakland Raiders signed Trent Brown to a monster $66 million contract many in the NFL saw Al Davis suddenly running the team again. A tackle making quarterback money?
Not even Joe Thomas made anything like that in his career, and he’s regarded as the best tackle in history. Then adding the $36 million in guaranteed money, it makes anyone worried about the salary cap pull their hair out.
But that can’t be what the organization thinks after getting to see the big fella perform during the start of training camp. Trent Brown has always been a dominant tackle, especially on the right side, and last season, he moved to the left side and won a Super Bowl protecting Tom Brady‘s blindside.
The offense and defense have been working out together, and the new teammates got an up-close look at the 6’8 385-pound hulk Brown is. He leveled P.J. Hall, the second-year defensive tackle, and Vontaze Burfict chimed in:
"“He’s a big wall, I’ll tell you that. He actually ran a press my way and he came up to me and … I lost vision of the running back because he was so big. But I’m excited for him. He has a baby face so I call him ‘Big Baby.’ Don’t tell him that, though. But he’s a great player, he moves pretty fast to be that big. Yeah, can’t wait.”"
Doug Martin even commented on his size saying:
"“I see a lot of body, that’s what I see. They do a good job of moving guys.”"
Trent Brown is added protection for a Raiders offense that really struggled to score points last season, even more so in the Red zone. Brown is another notch in the belt of Mike Mayock‘s good decisions as newly hired General Manager.
John Gruden has great talent to work with on offense and defense this year, and it has been evident in practice so far. There is a strong sense that this team is going to shock some teams in 2019, and Brown will play a huge role in making sure this offense utilizes their new weapons.