The Las Vegas Raiders made some serious noise on the first day of the legal tampering period, as they spent more than any other team in the league on free agents. That made perfect sense for John Spytek, who needed to spend cash and is looking to rebuild a league-worst roster from 2025.
While the moves for Tyler Linderbaum, Jalen Nailor, Kwity Paye, Quay Walker and Nakobe Dean have taken up much of the bandwidth as Raider Nation reflects on the first day, Spytek isn't exactly taking it easy on Tuesday. He woke up and got right back to work in Las Vegas.
According to ESPN's Ryan McFadden, the Raiders applied tenders to a pair of restricted free agents: Defensive tackle Thomas Booker IV and interior offensive lineman Jordan Meredith, both of whom were solid players for the Silver and Black last season.
Raiders apply restricted FA tenders to Jordan Meredith and Thomas Booker IV
Meredith was given a standard tender, which means he has received a one-year, fully-guaranteed offer from Las Vegas. According to NFL.com, this means that Meredith can still negotiate and sign an offer sheet with another team, but the Raiders can match that offer and would get to keep him.
Booker IV's situation is a bit different. Las Vegas placed an original round tender on him, which means that he has received a one-year deal worth $3.674 million. Because Booker IV was originally drafted in the fifth round of the 2023 draft, a team would have to send the Raiders a fifth-rounder to pry him.
So, unless another team wants Meredith badly enough to out-bid the Silver and Black, or a team wants to send a fifth-round pick to Las Vegas for Booker IV, then both of these players will return next season. Anything could happen, but it is unlikely they fall out of the Raiders' grasp.
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Spytek traded Jakorian Bennett to the Philadelphia Eagles for Booker IV last preseason, and with several former Eagles executives now in Las Vegas, it is unlikely that the team will want to part ways with him, especially after a solid campaign in 2025.
Although Meredith didn't exactly thrive at center last season, he has proven to be a capable player on the interior in the past. Even if he's not penciled into the starting lineup or he is relegated to a reserve role, the Raiders could do far worse than Meredith in terms of depth.
Keeping solid players on low-cost deals is a hack for team-building. Spytek clearly understands that, as evidenced by his moves to keep Booker IV and Meredith. Now, Raiders fans just need to hope that no other team swoops in for either of them.