Las Vegas Raiders smart to bring back Jerry Tillery
By Brad Weiss
The Las Vegas Raiders are bringing back Jerry Tillery in free agency, a smart move at a position of need for the Silver and Black.
During the early days of the 2023 NFL free agency period, it is clear that the Las Vegas Raiders are not going to be spending money in bunches. Sure, they spend over $20 million a year for a quarterback, but that was to be expected, as someone has to take over for Derek Carr next season.
Outside of that contract, and the one they gave to wide receiver Jakobi Meyers, Las Vegas has been relatively quiet early on in terms of free agency. They did, however, make a monster trade during the early days of free agency, sending star tight end Darren Waller to the New York Giants for the No. 100 overall draft pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Still, they have made some good moves so far, including one they pulled off on Wednesday in bringing back Jerry Tillery in free agency. Tillery had some big moments with the Raiders after coming off in the second half of the season from Los Angeles and now returns to play an even bigger role in Year 2.
A former first-round pick, Tillery has the size, speed, and athleticism that could make him a real menace up front for this Raiders defense in 2022. He also proved he can succeed in Patrick Graham’s system, something that most Las Vegas defenders found hard to do last season.
Raiders need much more help on the defensive side of the ball
It has been four days since the legal tampering period kicked off, and while the new league year started on Wednesday, deals have been in place since Monday. For the Raiders, there are still some elite playmakers available, especially on defense, so David Ziegler and his staff have their work cut out for them over the next few weeks leading into the 2023 NFL Draft.
After trading Waller, Las Vegas holds four of the first 100 picks in the draft, and five of the first 109, so they have plenty of draft capital to work with. The problem is, the Raiders franchise has long struggled in the draft, so hopefully, this new regime can turn that narrative around.