Should the Raiders bring Alec Ogletree to Las Vegas?
The Las Vegas Raiders are in need of help at the linebacker position, should they look in to bringing in the recently released AlecOgletree?
The New York Giants are in the midst of their rebuild and have decided to release veteran linebacker Alec Ogletree after just two years with the team. Ogletree was one of the team captains but the defense, and the team overall, struggled mightily in 2019 and his $10 million salary in 2020 was too much for the production they were getting.
It is no secret that the Raiders are in need of help at the linebacker position and they have been linked to several of the top prospects in the NFL Draft. Even if they plan to use a few of their early picks on linebackers they will need to bring in some veteran players to round out the group. This is especially the case if they plan to release Tahir Whitehead as several outlets have reported. So is Ogletree an option to replace Whitehead and tutor the incoming rookies?
The short answer is yes but only at the right price. If the Raiders do indeed release Whitehead they will be doing so because they can save $6.25 million in salary cap space so it makes little sense to give that money or more to a worse player. However for all of Whitehead’s struggles in pass coverage, that was once Ogletree’s strength and a move to Las Vegas could rejuvenate him.
Ogletree saw his playing time decrease in 2019 because those pass coverage skills were beginning to diminish but the Giants were one of the few teams worse than the Raiders in pass defense and that can’t be on his shoulders alone. Through his career he was one of the better coverage linebackers in football and has recorded 12 interceptions and 57 passes defended in seven years, compared to 5 and 24 for Whitehead in eight seasons.
Even in a down 2019, Ogletree recorded an interception and 6 passes defended and his best statistical year from that perspective was only two years ago. Ogletree has also been a tackle machine in the past, topping 100 tackles in any season in which he played 16 games and recorded 80 in just 13 games in 2019.
If the question is would Ogletree be a better option than Whitehead in pass coverage then the answer is once again yes. Ogletree also brings leadership to the equation as a former captain on the Rams and Giants and does not have the disciplinary issues that rumored target Vontaze Burfict does. He would be a great addition to the team and locker room and at 28-years-old, is still on the right side of 30 with room to spare.
Next. 2020 Free Agency Primer: Linebackers. dark
The Raiders could certainly do worse than Ogletree in free agency and if they can bring him in at a discount price, something in the range of $4-5 million on one or two-year deal then it would be smart business for the Silver and Black.