What are the Raiders' top 5 positions of need this offseason?

It is no secret that the Las Vegas Raiders' roster is in desperate need of repair.

Luckily, they will have over 100 million dollars of cap space and a very high draft pick at their disposal this offseason to do so.

Whether it is current head coach Antonio Pierce or another brave soul at the helm, they will be one of the select few who are tasked with improving the team after this season.

Any organization with only two wins at this point in the year is in need of every change and upgrade that they can get, so let's focus on a few of the major ones for the Raiders.

1. Quarterback

No surprise here.

The Raiders have not had an elite quarterback since the 2016 version of Derek Carr, and it is reflected in their record over the years.

A carousel of Jarrett Stidham, Jimmy Garoppolo, Brian Hoyer, Aidan O'Connell, Gardner Minshew and Desmond Ridder can only get a team so far.

Las Vegas will likely be picking very high when the NFL Draft rolls around in April, and they need to make the quarterback position the highest priority.

The crop of quarterbacks set to hit the free agent market this offseason is underwhelming, headlined by guys like Justin Fields, Sam Darnold, and Russell Wilson.

It would be a better bet to try and build up a young signal-caller like Shedeur Sanders, Jalen Milroe, or Cam Ward, among others.

2. Running back

Las Vegas took a bit of a gamble this offseason when they let star running back Josh Jacobs walk in free agency without extending him an offer.

Jacobs is now the league's third-leading rusher for the Green Bay Packers, and the Raiders have the worst rushing attack in the NFL.

To remedy this situation, the Raiders need to essentially clean house at the position and start fresh next season.

A good rushing attack can help a rookie quarterback tremendously, so the team should dip into both the draft and the free agency pool to get this done.

There are a handful of good running backs set to test the free agent market this year, like Aaron Jones, James Conner, and Najee Harris. Any of these guys are worthy of being paid by Las Vegas this offseason to be the main back.

A trade for someone like Travis Etienne should not be out of the question either.

3. Linebacker

This unit needs a lot of work.

Robert Spillane figures to be an extension candidate this offseason, but even he needs to dramatically improve his coverage or else this Raiders defense will continue to be gashed by opposing quarterbacks.

Divine Deablo should be left to walk in free agency this offseason, and none of the young linebackers on the roster have left their fingerprints on the game this season.

Players like Dre Greenlaw, Jerome Baker and Kyzir White will be available in the free agency pool this offseason, so the Raiders could dip their toes in the water there.

Or they could try to build through the draft and take a player like Jihaad Campbell from Alabama. Regardless, this room should be one of the first that the team looks at to improve this offseason.

4. Wide receiver

Jakobi Meyers is a great wide receiver, and Brock Bowers is a great weapon as well.

But adding another dynamic wide receiver into the mix could only help the Raiders' offense, especially if they are going to go with a rookie quarterback.

Given the immense cap space that the team has, I could see them making a swing for a big-name free agent. Tee Higgins and Chris Godwin are the two names that really come to mind.

But drafting a wide receiver somewhere in the middle rounds may help the team quite a bit as well.

If Tre Tucker really blossoms towards the end of the season, maybe the team will wait til the later rounds, but if Meyers is the only member of the room producing, the team will have to take matters into their own hands.

A trio of Brock Bowers, Jakobi Meyers, and a highly-touted free agent or rookie wide receiver would be quite a situation for a young quarterback to walk into.

5. Offensive line depth

The Raiders' starting group on the offensive line is finally set after 12 weeks.

Moving Jackson Powers-Johnson to center and sliding Jordan Meredith in at guard has given the team their best combination, so moving forward, I could see the team rolling with this group of five.

But outside of Thayer Munford Jr., the team does not have a great amount of depth.

In the middle and late rounds, the team should be targeting depth pieces on the offensive line, especially players who can play multiple positions.

Using a high draft pick on someone would be foolish as the starting group seems solidified, so I would advocate for letting Tom Telesco go to work and find valuable linemen in the middle rounds as he did in the 2024 draft.