Raiders news: Las Vegas makes a flurry of moves on Monday
By Brad Weiss
The Las Vegas Raiders continue to build up their roster heading into the 2023 NFL Draft, and they made a flurry of moves on Monday.
With the first wave of free agency in the books, Las Vegas Raiders general manager David Ziegler has started to get down to business. Ziegler and his staff made a flurry of moves on Monday, adding players on both sides of the ball, including a former first-round pick.
As we inch closer to the 2023 NFL Draft, there is still a lot of work to do, but the roster is starting to take shape.
Raiders add TE OJ Howard
Earlier this offseason, the Las Vegas Raiders made a bit of a shocking move by trading away star tight end Darren Waller to the New York Giants for a 2023 third-round pick. Waller was sent to the Big Apple in exchange for pick No. 100 overall in the draft, so maybe they replace him with one of the handful of elite tight ends in the draft class.
In the meantime, David Ziegler has been building up the position, signing Jesper Horsted, and on Monday, agreeing to terms with OJ Howard. Howard is a former Super Bowl winner, as well as a first-round pick, but he has never been very productive, so maybe he can take his career to new heights in the Silver and Black.
Raiders stack solid depth on defense
A few other names added to the roster on Monday were safety Jaquan Johnson and defensive end Jordan Willis. Johnson is a solid player as a depth defensive back, and on special teams, while Willis is making his fourth stop in his NFL career, and has at least two sacks in each of the last three seasons.
Las Vegas also has said goodbye to some fan favorites in recent days, including wide receiver Mack Hollins and long-snapper Trent Sieg. Keelan Cole will return on a one-year deal in 2023 and will be joined by free agent Cam Sims, a 6-foot-5 wideout who has hauled in only 57 catches in five seasons.