The Las Vegas Raiders wagered a lot on their young talent this offseason when Pete Carroll and John Spytek came to town. Instead of paying veterans in free agency, they built the team through the draft and signed a handful of cheap or downtrodden players in the open market.
In the defensive backfield, especially, the team is completely revamped. There are now four new starters in the secondary in Las Vegas, as Isaiah Pola-Mao was re-signed to be a starter, Kyu Blu Kelly was given a chance to start at cornerback, and Jeremy Chinn and Eric Stokes joined in free agency.
Through three games, Pola-Mao has been quite underwhelming, and Kelly has been a completely mixed bag. But Chinn and Stokes have both performed well, with the latter being more of a pleasant surprise than an expected stud like the former.
Eric Stokes must shine for Raiders against Rome Odunze and DJ Moore
Stokes' overall Pro Football Focus grade of 59.1 is essentially average, as he is ranked 87th out of a qualifying 158 players through three weeks. But statistically, at least, he has played well and is continuing to get better.
After allowing five catches on seven targets for 43 yards in Week 1, which meant he gave up an opposing passer rating of 87.2, Stokes has kicked it into gear. His PFF grades for the last two weeks in coverage showed this, as they were a respectable 66.8 and 72.2.
The last two weeks, he has also given up just one catch on four targets for 25 yards. He has two pass break-ups in this span as well, and his overall opposing passer rating has dropped to 73.3. This includes holding Marcus Mariota to a 39.6 mark in Week 3, which is perfect for a cornerback.
It won't get any easier for Stokes in Week 4 against the Chicago Bears, however, as the promising cornerback has nowhere to hide. The Bears have a treacherous and ever-improving wide receiver trio of Rome Odunze, DJ Moore and Luther Burden III, all of whom take turns lining up outside.
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Odunze has been the star of the show, catching 16 passes for 227 yards and four touchdowns through three games. Moore has tacked on 12 catches for 135 yards and a score, and Burden broke out last week with a three-catch, 101-yard, one-touchdown performance.
Carroll spoke to the press on Wednesday afternoon and told reporters exactly what kind of threat Odunze, in particular, poses to the Raiders' secondary.
"Yeah, he's a good player. You know, we watched him in college, too, so I've seen him a lot," Carroll said. 'They're going to him; he's [their] leading target guy, and they'll continue to do that, I would think. He can do a little bit of everything. He's really fast, he's good size, he's tough, he's making the plays. So we have to know where he is. We have to be really conscious that we can take care of him."
However, the veteran head coach talked about Stokes in the same media availability, and it seems like he is incredibly confident in his ability to rise to the occasion.
"Shoot. I think he's played great football. I think he's been he's been our top guy out there," Carroll said. "He's challenged everything when he had his opportunities, and he's got his wins. He's been really clean with his hands. There's nothing that he can't do. I think he can really blossom into a terrific football player for us, and we're lucky we got him."