For all of the great moves that the Las Vegas Raiders made this offseason under general manager John Spytek and head coach Pete Carroll, up until recently, there seemed to be a glaring hole in the secondary at the slot cornerback position.
After losing Nate Hobbs this offseason, the team did re-sign Darnay Holmes, but he is far from a surefire solution. Free agency and the draft netted them wide corners like Eric Stokes and third-rounder Darien Porter, but neither of these players solved the issue in the slot.
Fortunately, Carroll and the staff have put a premium on versatility and competition during training camp. Based on various reports, it seems like free agent signing Lonnie Johnson Jr. and undrafted rookie Greedy Vance Jr. are stepping up to the plate.
Greedy Vance Jr. and Lonnie Johnson Jr. stepping up for Raiders secondary
During the offseason program, it was reported that Johnson, a versatile defensive back, was rotating in at the slot. The noise surrounding him increased last week when Levi Edwards of Raiders.com reported that Johnson recorded a pick-six off Geno Smith in a live drill.
When the pads came on this week, Johnson continued with his strong play. During Tuesday's practice, Vegas Sports Today's Mike Dixon reported that Johnson got another interception, this time off a pass from Aidan O'Connell.
Vance, who transitioned from a wide corner into the slot during his five college seasons at Louisville, Florida State and Southern California, has impressed as well. During Sunday's practice, ESPN's Ryan McFadden reported that Vance intercepted O'Connell.
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On Tuesday, Vance followed that up with another interception off O'Connell. According to Dixon, Vance has been constantly making plays during training camp and appears to be one of the hungrier players on the roster.
Carroll corroborated these sentiments from reporters by praising Vance during Tuesday's press conference.
"Greedy Vance, he did a nice job too, you know," Carroll said. "He's a young kid coming out of nowhere, not USC nowhere, but just being a free agent and all that. Little guy, (but) he played like crazy yesterday and again today."
While Johnson appears to be comfortably on the roster, Vance making the 53-man team would be an incredible story. However, if he keeps playing like he has been, then it won't be long until Raider Nation begins to feel like they have a strength in the slot, where they originally felt like they had a weakness.