Las Vegas Raiders fans are excited about the offense that Klint Kubiak is bringing to the desert. Not only will there be a new quarterback at the helm, but it'll be an entirely new mindset and approach with different personnel and schematics. A wholesale change.
Now, one of those major changes will be the institution of a fullback, which the Silver and Black have gone several years without. The Raiders have a rich fullback history, with legends like Mark van Eeghen, Pete Banaszak, Marcel Reece, Jamize Olawale and Marv Hubbard coming to mind.
Looking to now fill those big shoes will be Connor Heyward, whom Las Vegas reportedly signed on Thursday. Heyward, the former Pittsburgh Steelers tight end, is coming to the Raiders on a two-year, $5.5 million deal. That's good money for a fullback, and a testament to how much they believe in him.
Raiders sign former Steelers TE Connor Heyward as their fullback
Heyward came into the league as a tight end out of Michigan State. In fact, he was a college teammate of fellow new Raider Jalen Nailor for four years with the Spartans, and the two were both selected in the 6th round of the 2022 NFL Draft, 17 picks apart. They're now reunited in Las Vegas.
Surely, Heyward also knows new Raiders wide receivers coach Zach Azzanni, who held the same title with the Steelers for two seasons during Heyward's four-year tenure in Pittsburgh. A character witness always helps to supplement what Kubiak and Spytek surely saw in the film room.
And it should be noted that Heyward comes from quite the NFL bloodline. His father, Craig, was once a Pro Bowl running back for the Atlanta Falcons. His cousin, Shaka, has spent the last two seasons as a linebacker for the Cincinnati Bengals.
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Oh, and his brother, Cameron, is a seven-time Pro Bowler and six-time All-Pro defensive tackle for the Steelers. And at nearly 37 years old, Cameron Heyward is still dominating in the NFL and earning new contracts from the Pittsburgh front office. Simply put, Connor Heyward was born to play football.
He is seemingly making a full-time switch to fullback after playing just 143 of his 874 career offensive snaps there across four seasons in Pittsburgh, all of which came in the last three years. But Heyward must have impressed on tape, otherwise the Raiders wouldn't have invested in him as they did.
Heyward's role is simple: Pave the way for Ashton Jeanty and Las Vegas' running backs, and protect Fernando Mendoza when called upon. But his history as a tight end may also allow him to have some fun coming out of the backfield as a route-runner. Kubiak does love being creative, after all.