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Las Vegas Raiders must upgrade all three levels of the defense in 2020

By Brad Weiss

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 08: Dion Lewis #33 of the Tennessee Titans is tackled by Tahir Whitehead #59 of the Oakland Raiders in the fourth quarter at RingCentral Coliseum on December 08, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 08: Dion Lewis #33 of the Tennessee Titans is tackled by Tahir Whitehead #59 of the Oakland Raiders in the fourth quarter at RingCentral Coliseum on December 08, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images) /
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CARSON, CALIFORNIA – DECEMBER 22: Maxx Crosby #98 of the Oakland Raiders celebrates his stop of Melvin Gordon #25 of the Los Angeles Chargers during the second quarter at Dignity Health Sports Park on December 22, 2019 in Carson, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
CARSON, CALIFORNIA – DECEMBER 22: Maxx Crosby #98 of the Oakland Raiders celebrates his stop of Melvin Gordon #25 of the Los Angeles Chargers during the second quarter at Dignity Health Sports Park on December 22, 2019 in Carson, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

Defensive Line

Coming off a 2018 season where the team was pitiful in terms of getting after the quarterback, the Raiders saw a major upgrade along the defensive line. Rookies Clelin Ferrell and Maxx Crosby played huge roles in Year No. 1, and Crosby finished the season with double-digit sacks, proving to be one of the steals of the 2019 NFL Draft.

In addition, second-year pros P.J. Hall and Maurice Hurst took another step in the right direction, and veterans Josh Mauro, Benson Mayowa, and Dion Jordan all stepped up for the Silver and Black. Overall, this was a unit that was vastly improved from the year before, but there is still work to be done.

Mayowa, Mauro, and Jordan are all going to be free agents, and it will be interesting to see whether or not they bring them back in 2020. You can make a case for all three being back, and even if the are all back, the Raiders have to add talent via free agency, or the 2020 NFL Draft at defensive tackle.

Las Vegas has a good salary cap number this offseason, and five of the first 91 selections in the NFL Draft, so they could get a guy who instantly makes this unit better in 2020. Being strong up front on both sides of the ball has been the priority for the team in recent years, and they cannot stop stacking talent this offseason.

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