The Las Vegas Raiders have a serious weakness at the cornerback position, but they definitely got better on Wednesday by signing Eli Apple.
The Las Vegas Raiders continue to add depth to their defense in free agency, this time adding former New York Giants and New Orleans Saints cornerback Eli Apple. Apple joins a position group led by second-year Trayvon Mullen, but also a group that does not have much behind him.
Monday and Tuesday, the Raiders added some quality pieces to their defense, including two linebackers in Cory Littleton and Nick Kwiatkoski, as well as safety Jeff Heath. In Apple, they get a former high draft pick who got better once he left the Giants, who picked him with the tenth overall selection in the 2016 NFL Draft.
Apple struggled in New York, and after just two and a half years with the Giants, he was traded to the New Orleans Saints. It was with New Orleans that he started showing some of his potential, but still has never fully living up to expectations.
During the 2019 campaign, Apple recorded 58 tackles with no interceptions but played well throughout the season. Apple has had an up and down career but has shown flashes of being a starting corner in the NFL.
Apple's best season came in 2018, where Apple recorded 75 total tackles and two interceptions. He is by no means close to what he was expected to be, but the addition of Apple is no doubt a positive for the team, and being only 24-years old, he still has room to grow.
The Raiders badly needed depth at the cornerback position, and although the Raiders have Travyon Mullen and will likely add another corner in free agency or the draft, Apple will be a good piece to a less than stellar Raiders secondary.
If Apple can continue to improve his play, he could be a pleasant surprise for the Raiders in 2020, as well as helping Trayvon Mullen improve his game. The Raiders have a lot of young corners in their roster as of now with Mullen, Johnson, and Nixon, so having a player like Apple being a part of the team will only benefit those young players.
The contract details for cornerback Eli Apple and the Las Vegas Raiders have not yet been released.