The Las Vegas Raiders made several key changes during their first offseason under general manager John Spytek and head coach Pete Carroll. While their moves on offense received most of the attention, there was far more movement on the other side of the ball.
Las Vegas opted to revamp the entire back end of its defense, as almost none of its 2024 Week 1 starters at linebacker or in the secondary were retained. That opened an opportunity for cornerback Jakorian Bennett to step into a bigger role after making 11 starts over his first two seasons.
Instead, the Raiders shipped the former fourth-round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for defensive tackle Thomas Booker IV. Bennett then had a strong preseason in Philadelphia, leading to questions about whether Las Vegas gave up on him too quickly.
Former Raiders CB Jakorian Bennett continues to show why trading him was a mistake
Bennett appeared in the Eagles' final two preseason games, recording eight total tackles, six solo tackles and two passes defended. A deeper dive into his play shows that he likely outperformed his numbers as well. NFL Draft Files shared some footage of his work during the preseason:
"Jakorian Bennett this preseason for the #Eagles: ▫️ 86.2 PFF coverage grade ▫️ 8 targets ▫️ 5 catches allowed ▫️ 37 passing yards allowed ▫️ 2 PBUs ▫️ 73.4 passer rating allowed. Played even better than his stats. Very tight coverage, just some tough catches."
Jakorian Bennet this preseason for the #Eagles:
— NFL Draft Files (@NFL_DF) August 27, 2025
▫️ 86.2 PFF coverage grade
▫️ 8 targets
▫️ 5 catches allowed
▫️ 37 passing yards allowed
▫️ 2 PBUs
▫️ 73.4 passer rating allowed
Played even better than his stats. Very tight coverage, just some tough catches. pic.twitter.com/yLsC5o96hz
Bennett appears to be competing for a starting role with the defending Super Bowl champions already. Meanwhile, the Raiders have plenty of questions in their cornerback room, which is arguably the team's biggest weakness heading into the 2025 NFL season.
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Las Vegas retained five cornerbacks -- Darnay Holmes, Kyu Blu Kelly, Darien Porter, Decamerion Richardson and Eric Stokes -- on their initial 53-man roster. It is clear that they may have been too quick to cut bait on Bennett, even if Booker IV also fills a need.
In two seasons with the Raiders, Bennett recorded 58 total tackles, 39 solo tackles and 11 passes defended. While he had a strong preseason with the Eagles, time will tell if Las Vegas made the right decision to move on from the cornerback.
Booker also played well in the preseason, recording 10 total tackles, seven solo tackles and 1.0 sack. His performance could make the deal pay off for the Raiders; however, the decision could haunt the organization if the team's cornerback play is not up to par and Bennett continues to ascend.