Another busy week in Las Vegas, as the Raiders start the week off with a few moves.
The Las Vegas Raiders have been one of the busier teams this off-season, and this week has been no exception to that. Since the week’s start on Sunday, the Silver and Black have announced the signings of three players:
Offensive lineman Tyrone Wheatley Jr, cornerback Stanford Samuels III, and undrafted free agent tight end Travis Koontz.
Wheatley was the first of the three, being signed on Sunday. If you’re wondering why this name looks familiar, there’s a reason: His father, Tyrone Wheatley Sr, spent six-years with the Raiders, starting in 36 games and recording 3,682 rushing yards with 32 touchdowns. Wheatley Jr, an offensive tackle, adds depth to an offensive line that struggled last season.
Like Wheatley Jr, Stanford Samuels was an undrafted free agent in the 2020 NFL draft. Unlike Wheatley Jr, Samuels has appeared in an NFL game. Totaling just 13 snaps, Pro Football Focus awarded the cornerback a grade of 67.9, in what was his only season with action up to this point.
The third of the three signings was Travis Koontz, an undrafted free agent from the ’22 NFL draft who has some experience being a Raider – A three-year Texas Tech Red Raider. In these three seasons, Koontz recorded 647 yards with 45 receptions.
With addition comes subtractions for the Raiders
As a corresponding move to the signings, two players have been waived: Center Brett Heggie and receiver Tre Turner.
Turner has the talent to make an active roster, making this one of the more shocking cuts this early, especially considering the departure of Bryan Edwards just a handful of days ago. It’s unclear whether McDaniels wishes to carry five or six receivers on the roster heading into the ’22 season, but given the current roster, Turner seemed to have a great opportunity to survive final roster cuts.
Raiders: Zamir White should push Josh Jacobs to be elite in 2022
The Las Vegas Raiders have plenty of options at running back going into 2022, and new draft pick Zamir White should push the guys in front of him.
The possibility of the pass catcher rejoining the team exists, but for now, Las Vegas heads in a different direction.