The Las Vegas Raiders were in a tight spot this offseason, as a new regime came in to turn around a team that won just four games last year. Unfortunately, they had tons of talented free agents set to test the open market, and they couldn't re-sign even most of them.
While the departure of linebacker Robert Spillane was disappointing to Raider Nation, the fan base was actually glad to see Divine Deablo walk, as he had underwhelmed in his four years with the team. These two were replaced with cheap veterans, Elandon Roberts and Devin White.
Through the first few weeks of the 2025 NFL season, this seemed like a promising gamble. Both White and Roberts were playing well for the Raiders, Spillane was struggling with the New England Patriots, and Deablo was playing well for the Atlanta Falcons, but no one expected it to last.
Raiders LB struggles remind fans of John Spytek's offseason decisions
However, with the first quarter of the season now in the rearview mirror, this decision looks like a bit of a disaster. Spillane has completely recovered from his early-season woes, recording 25 tackles, an interception and two passes defended in the past two weeks.
His Pro Football Focus grades rose from a 43.9 and a 30.5 in the first two weeks to a 79.1 and an 81.1 in the two games since. Spillane also hasn't missed a tackle in the last two weeks after missing eight in the first two contests.
Deablo has also kept up his elite level of play, as he is currently the highest-graded player on the Falcons' defense. He has recorded 18 tackles, 0.5 sacks, three passes defended and a fumble recovery through four weeks.
By contrast, Roberts has been struggling so far this season in Las Vegas. His PFF grade of 59.8 is below-average, and he has started to see his role diminish. In Week 4, he graded well, but he played just 13 snaps after playing 39 and 31 during the last two contests.
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White took over for him as the middle linebacker and green dot for the defense, but his play too has severely tapered off since Week 1. After a strong showing against the Patriots, as evidenced by his 67.3 PFF mark, his scores have dropped off to 58.9, 35.7 and 39.2 in the last three weeks.
Neither White nor Roberts has been stout in coverage either, and the two have a combined eight missed tackles in the last three games. Deablo has missed just one all season, and Spillane has missed zero in the last two weeks.
At first, it seemed like the gamble to replace Spillane and Deablo with Roberts and White was going to pay off. With a few weeks of clarity now, however, this seems like a careless miscue from new general manager John Spytek.
Although contractually, it would have been difficult to retain Spillane and Deablo at the price of $11 million and $7 million per year, respectively, it seems like the Raiders are getting what they paid for. Perhaps it is time to give Tommy Eichenberg a shot at middle linebacker to salvage the position.