A brief background of the new faces in the linebacker unit
Up to this point in the off-season, the Las Vegas Raiders have signed signed three linebackers, all of which who perfectly fit the new scheme Patrick Graham is running.
Those three signings consist of Micah Kiser, Kyler Fackrell and Jayon Brown.
Kiser has started 11 games throughout his professional career, with 9 of those 11 coming in 2020. This was a season where the former Ram recorded 3 pass defenses, 77 tackles, and a forced fumble.
Fackrell is an edge-rushing linebacker who’s totaled 23.5 sacks throughout his career, including a double-digit year back in 2018. Over the past two-seasons, Fackrell also added a bit of coverage skills to his game, breaking up 3 passes and recording an interception. The 6’5 OLB has also forced two fumbles in that timespan.
The third and final addition, Jayon Brown, is the most intriguing of the three and in all likelihood is a day-one starter.
Brown has started 39 contests in the last four-years, showcasing his versatility from an ILB role. In the four seasons mentioned, Brown has been able to produce 333 tackles, with 8 being sacks, and another 16 being tackles behind the line of scrimmage. The former Titan has also proved to be a menace against the pass, recording 24 pass breakups and one interception in each of these four seasons.
These names aren’t the flashiest, so it isn’t too surprising if Raider Nation isn’t as content with the newly shaped unit as they should be. All three of these players can produce meaningful snaps in Patrick Graham’s system, though, where each of the three fit well.
The three new additions help form a new linebacker unit which contains a Pro Bowler of the ’21 season, Denzel Perryman. Through his 15 games played, Perryman recorded 154 tackles with 3 passes defended. Perryman was also able to recover two fumbles.
’21 rookie Divine Deablo joined Perryman as the only two linebackers returning from the ’21 roster who played last season. Deablo was able to overtake veteran Cory Littleton as a starter in the unit, eventually leading to Littleton being cut this off-season.