Can the revamped Las Vegas Raiders defense dominate in 2020?
By Brad Weiss
Can the revamped Las Vegas Raiders defense dominate in 2020?
New-look secondary
Last season, Trayvon Mullen looked all the bit the part of a true CB1 once he got into the starting lineup, which was a breath of fresh air for a fan base who has seen some shoddy play from the cornerback position in years past. This offseason, Mayock hit the reset button on the cornerback room, using a first round draft pick on Damon Arnette, and putting together a sneaky good free agent deal with Prince Amukamara.
Arnette has impressed during camp, raising questions about whether or not he could actually win the starting job. If Arnette is the real deal, than Mayock has completely upgraded the starting cornerback tandem in two drafts. That is pretty impressive.
All early indicators show that he is a kid who is not only physically gifted, but one who plays the game with fearlessness, something that just cannot be taught.
At safety, the Raiders will welcome the return of Johnathan Abram, a fiery, hard-hitting defensive back who will change the entire complextion of the position group in 2020. Erik Harris returns after a breakout season, and Damarious Randall and Jeff Heath were brought in via free agency.
Overall, the safety position is vastly improved in 2020 as well.
The bottom line is, the Raiders got better on all three levels of their defense, and the unit as a whole is deeper than it has been in year’s past. They are going to be tested early in 2020, as they play Patrick Mahomes, Drew Brees, and Tom Brady in three of their first six games, so we will get a good barometer of where they stand in the first half of the season.