Las Vegas Raiders 2019 Position Review: Defensive Ends

What needs to change in 2020?

Primarily the Raiders need to get more out of Clelin Ferrell so he can justify his draft position and avoid that dreaded bust label. He may never become a dominant pass rusher but if he can add some muscle to his frame and more moves to his repertoire he could control the game in other ways. He graded well as a run defender according to PFF and that could be where he makes his name, similar to Seahawks DE Jadeveon Clowney who is one of the best run stuffers in the league.

The Raiders should also target some pass rush help in free agency with all of their cap space and bringing back Mayowa on the cheap would be a good place to start. He proved effective with limited opportunities and can provide excellent cover and depth. Bringing back Dion Jordan would be smart business as well as he could likely be had at a discount since the Raiders gave him a chance after his lengthy suspension.

There are a number of edge rushers in the market and if the Raiders do not want to break the bank and commit long-term to someone like Shaquil Barrett or Matt Judon, they can target older pass rushers on short-term deals like Jason Pierre-Paul or Robert Quinn. Quinn in particular is an intriguing option given his history with Defensive Line coach Rod Marinelli.

In this era of the NFL you can never have enough pass rushers and the Raiders would do well to spend some of their prodigious salary cap room on that position. There are also a number of pass rushers available in the draft that the Raiders could, and should, target to continue building a potentially dominant defensive line.