Upon taking over as the Las Vegas Raiders' new head man, Klint Kubiak retained one key coach from Pete Carroll's staff: Rob Leonard. Not only was he kept around, but promoted from defensive line coach to defensive coordinator, and with that, there will be a shift to a base 3-4 defensive scheme.
That change is easy to overblow in a broad sense, but it does require different skill sets in some spots compared to a 4-3 or 4-2-5 scheme that Las Vegas has run in recent years under Patrick Graham. Alignments are, obviously, different for some positions too.
One notable spot the Raiders will need to operate a 3-4 effectively is nose tackle, or a "0-technique" that lines up directly over the center. An effective player in that spot keeps interior offensive lineman from getting to the second level in the run game, which allows linebackers to freely make plays.
A look at the Raiders' depth chart when OTAs were done showed a definite question mark at nose tackle. If the season started today, veteran Adam Butler, who is not a nose tackle by trade, would probably be the starter there. But what if Las Vegas could remedy this with a small trade?
Trade idea gives Raiders an interesting option for key spot in 3-4 defense
Moe Moton of Bleacher Report has proposed one trade each NFL team should consider before the 2026 NFL season starts. For the Raiders, he suggested sending a late 2027 draft pick to the Cincinnati Bengals for defensive tackle Kris Jenkins Jr.
"In a transition to an odd-man front, the Raiders entered the offseason with a need at nose tackle. Yet they didn't invest premium draft capital or sign a premier free agent to fill the position. At 32, Adam Butler is the front-runner for that role.
"The Raiders can add a young interior defender to develop as a future starting nose tackle. They should make a call for Jenkins, who may be buried on the Cincinnati Bengals depth chart after the team signed Jonathan Allen and acquired Dexter Lawrence II from the New York Giants.
"In his 2024 rookie campaign, Jenkins showed some flashes, recording 31 tackles (three for loss) and three sacks. Still only 24, the third-year pro has room for growth if he sees the field in a decent role."
With the offseason additions of Dexter Lawrence and Jonathan Allen, additional depth that was already otherwise in place and a draft pick in April added to the mix, Jenkins looks like the most prominent odd-man out in the Bengals' defensive tackle mix.
He fits the Raiders' timeline as a 24-year-old, and Jenkins does have some experience at nose, but not much. Through two NFL seasons, he has totaled just 51 snaps at the 0-technique and eight at the 1-technique, meaning he was lined up on the center's outside shoulder.
As Matt Fitzgerald of Strype Hype, FanSided's dedicated Bengals page, wrote earlier this offseason, Jenkins "isn't quite big or functionally strong enough to be a true nose tackle," and "he's not quite athletic enough to be a true difference-maker as a 3-technique."
Jenkins has a second-round draft pedigree and NFL bloodlines (his father was a four-time Pro Bowler and a two-time All-Pro defensive tackle). He likely has more ability in him than the Bengals have been able to cultivate, as teased by the flashes he has shown.
If a change of scenery is in order for Jenkins, and it sure seems to be, his best opportunity may be in Las Vegas. And if the price is just a late 2027 draft pick, then he's a viable flier for the Raiders to take in the effort to find a nose tackle, or to at least bolster their defensive interior.
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