Should the Las Vegas Raiders replace Trent Brown with Trent Williams?

Addressing the offensive line is of the utmost importance for the Las Vegas Raiders, as they have big decisions to make. What will they do about Denzelle Good and Richie Incognito, will the Raiders bring back the swing offensive lineman or the veteran guard in 2021? The other critical issue is what to do with Trent Brown, the Pro Bowl tackle’s health has been concerning.

Snagging Trent Williams from the San Francisco 49ers might be able to help with at least one of those concerns.

When the Raiders signed Trent Brown back in 2019, it was hailed as a cornerstone move, as the team now had a prized right tackle. Since joining the Silver and Black, unfortunately, Brown’s presence has been a polarizing topic among fans and writers.

Some fans see him as a premier player but one that carries a lot of weight, figurative and literally.

Then there’s the issue with Brown’s contract, which seemed justifiable when he signed but now appears to be bloated considering what the return has been. Las Vegas could move on from this deal and to counter Brown’s loss, the team could go after Williams.

Williams would fit right in with the Raiders

One doubt that some fans may have is the fact that Williams has mostly played left tackle recently. With both the 49ers and the Washington Football Team, the eight-time Pro Bowler played on the left side, which is currently manned by Kolton Miller. So the conundrum would be if the team would consider moving Miller or would they sign Williams to literally replace Brown?

For those of you that are wondering, Williams hasn’t played at right tackle on regular basis since his days at Oklahoma. On the other hand, Miller saw action on the right side in his collegiate career at UCLA.

Either way, it would appear this would be a good problem to have. According to Pro Football Focus, Williams was one of the top graded tackles in the entire NFL. His grades were astonishing across the board, posting a 91.9 grade overall, 91.8 in run blocking, and 84.8 in pass blocking.

His run blocking in particular would be of most use with the Raiders considering they have Josh Jacobs.

As you can see in blocks such as the one above, Williams has devastating power that could surely help the Raiders’ offensive line regain its previous form. Standing at six-foot-five and weighing in at 320 pounds, while still relatively young at 32, Williams would be the perfect complement to Miller and center Rodney Hudson.

The running game took a hit in 2020 due to injuries and COVID-19 but a unit consisting of Williams, Hudson, Miller, Good, and Gabe Jackson should have both Raider Nation and Jacobs salivating.