The Las Vegas Raiders needed a reset last offseason, and they started that effort by hiring Pete Carroll. His first decree as the head coach was encouraging first-time general manager John Spytek to acquire quarterback Geno Smith from the Seattle Seahawks.
Through seven games, things are not going as planned. The 74-year-old Carroll looks like a horrible fit for what was always going to be a multi-year rebuild, and Smith has not performed well, to put it mildly.
Time will tell how the Week 8 bye week lands as an evaluation point. There's a chance that the Raiders take advantage of the week off and get a lot better. There's an equal likelihood, however, that things will plummet further into chaos for Las Vegas.
Raiders' best offseason addition has been unearthed
There were some good decisions made by Spytek and the Raiders last offseason, however. But the marquee two are not working out anywhere near as most hoped, and they naturally overshadow everything else. Time will also tell if owner Mark Davis' alleged patience proves to be well-founded.
In ESPN's Week 9 Power Rankings, each of their NFL beat writers named the best offseason addition for the team they cover. Raiders reporter Ryan McFadden went with cornerback Eric Stokes, who signed a one-year, $3.5 million deal with Las Vegas back in March.
"Stokes, who signed a one-year deal with Las Vegas in the offseason, has been fairly solid as a starter. In 221 coverage snaps, Stokes has allowed 11 catches for 161 yards and a touchdown on 21 targets. He has given up a passer rating of 93.6 and a completion rate of 52.4%," McFadden wrote. "He's just a steady player... Very athletic [and] smart," Raiders defensive backs coach Joe Woods said. "He hasn't made a lot of plays on the ball because there haven't been a lot of opportunities coming his way. But at the same time, he hasn't given up a lot of plays."
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While some of the deeper analytical data about Stokes' performance this season varies somewhat based on the source, there's no denying how excellent he has been this season, despite not having just three pass breakups and zero interceptions.
Stokes has flown under the radar a bit because it has been very profitable for opposing offenses to avoid targeting him. Fellow starter Kyu Blu Kelly has been one of the worst cover corners in the league, while inexplicably playing over 93 percent of the defensive snaps before the bye.
At a glance, it might be hard to anoint anyone as the Raiders' best addition from last offseason. But Stokes has been everything fans could've hoped for when he was signed, and he also may be securing his place in the long-term plan during an otherwise dismal season for the rest of the team.