Oakland Raiders: Five Late Round Prospects the Team Should Target
By Dan Fappiano
Nov 2, 2013; University Park, PA, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions safety Adrian Amos (4) during the third quarter against the Illinois Fighting Illini at Beaver Stadium. Penn State defeated Illinois 24-17. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O
Adrian Amos, S, Penn State
Nate Allen just signed with the Raiders, so their safety situation is all cleared up, correct? Wrong.
While Allen is only going on 28 years old, he has not proven himself to be a long term solution at safety for the Raiders. In 2014 he was burned game after game, most notoriously allowing Dez Bryant to catch for 114 yards and three TDs in week 14.
On the opposite side at strong safety, the Raiders are currently deploying Charles Woodson. While Woodson has played well, he is still 38, and is going into his 18th year in the NFL. There is no question that his time is almost done. The Raiders must start acquiring young safeties to prepare for Woodson’s retirement and the inevitable downfall of Nate Allen.
That is where Adrian Amos comes in. Amos comes in at 6’0″, weighing 218 pounds, and can be likened to Chiefs star safety Eric Berry. He ran a 4.5 at the combine, which was fifth among all safeties. He was the combine leader among safeties in the 20 and 60 yard shuttle.
He was one of the top safeties at the combine as a whole, and with a weak safety class in the 2015 draft, can really shine.
Amos is extremely athletic and great at pass defense. He has great route recognition and is able to turn and recover the ball when it is in the air. He is also very versatile and can play both safety positions along with slot corner.
This helps because if Woodson was to get hurt, Amos can step in for him, and vice versa with Nate Allen. He has a smooth back pedal and is able to crowd receivers. Amos has a great football IQ, physicality, and technique in the pass game. Most impressively, he only allowed 3.9 yards per catch. Playing the Big 10 against top level talent, to allow minimal yards per catch like that is an extraordinary feat.
The problem with Amos is how he covers the run game. While everything in the pass game checks out, his run defense is not on the same level. He has been known to take poor angles at the runner, and has a tendency to aim high but end up making ankle tackles.
The thing with Amos is that every problem he has with his run game abilities can be fixed. His pass defense alone is good enough that the Raiders should take a chance on him.
The Raiders are going to have a need for Safeties in the near future, and given the sporadic spending the Raiders have committed in the 2015 offseason, it looks like the future is now.