Las Vegas Raiders: 5 pressing questions heading into training camp

How Will Clelin Ferrell Perform with New Physique?

Clelin Ferrell had an underwhelming rookie term, logging 38 tackles, eight for loss, and 4.5 sacks through 15 contests. Critics have already called him a “bust” which is a premature label to place on a second-year player who had a few bright moments in his first season.

Ferrell didn’t produce the returns that justify his status as the No. 4 overall pick, but he wasn’t a total disappointment either.

During the offseason, Ferrell worked on a few things: his body, hip movement and angles. He spent extensive time with his trainer Mark Hall, per Tafur.

“He’s lean and mean and running pretty good,” Hall said. “We had a really good offseason and I know he can’t wait to get to Las Vegas and put that product on the field. We made sure he didn’t lose any speed with the weight gain. And he is using his hips more — that’s something he didn’t use a lot last year. He is better able to attack angles now. He understands the angles better now.”

Ferrell’s focus on weight and angles sounds a lot like Arden Key during the last offseason. We didn’t see the LSU product’s progress because he suffered a broken foot in November.

Hall says Ferrell bulked up to 275 pounds. If the Clemson product has a better understanding of how to attack the opposition and use his leverage, we should see him collapse the pocket a lot more in the upcoming season. The Raiders need him to step up in the pass rush after the defense tied for 29th in quarterback pressures (117) in 2019.