Oakland Raiders: 5 Reasons Fans Can Be Optimistic About 2015

Dec 21, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) prepares to take a snap against the Buffalo Bills in the fourth quarter at O.co Coliseum. The Raiders defeated the Bills 26-24. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

No, the Oakland Raiders‘ offseason hasn’t gone entirely as planned – specifically regarding free agency. They swung and missed at some of the NFL’s premier free agents like Ndamukong Suh, DeMarco Murray, and Randall Cobb. But unlike last year, at least Reggie McKenzie was in the game. He wasn’t settling for aging stars on the downside of their career simply because they were great leaders in the locker room, but more importantly, because they were more cost effective.

This year, McKenzie drove that Brinks truck around and tried to get some of the league’s elite to sign on the dotted line with the Raiders. It didn’t work out as planned, but the simple fact that McKenzie made the effort to bring the big guns to Oakland is something of a moral victory in and of itself for Raider fans.

Unfortunately though, the NFL is an unforgiving place, and moral victories usually don’t amount to squat.

Unable to sign the marquee players though, or perhaps unwilling to sign them at the prices they wanted – yeah, we’re talking to you Terrance Knighton – McKenzie switched to Plan B. And it turns out that Plan B wasn’t actually half bad.

McKenzie brought in ten different free agents, many of whom, will be starters from the get go for Oakland. And unlike past years, he didn’t bring in the older veterans with nothing left in the tank. McKenzie went out and got young playmakers, who are still in their prime, and will step in and contribute right away.

Dan Williams, Nate Allen, Roy Helu, Curtis Lofton, James Dockery, Malcolm Smith, Rodney Hudson, Lee Smith, Trent Richardson, and yeah, Christian Ponder.

It’s not exactly a big name, murderer’s row of free agent signings. But those free agent signings make the Raiders a better team now than they were before the start of free agency. Oakland’s free agent class will give the team some starting talent, depth, versatility, and flexibility of the sort the team hasn’t had in some time.

Oakland will be much stronger up the middle on both sides of the ball, will be much stronger against the run, and will be able to push the pocket better than they did in 2014. There is much work to be done yet, and the roster is still a work in progress. But the Raiders look to be in better shape now than they were at any point last season.

There is reason for optimism in Oakland. No, realistically, they likely won’t contend for a title in 2015. But they’ll likely be far more competitive than they were in 2014.

There are a whole lot of people out there who have already counted the Raiders out this season. But this team will continue to build, get stronger, and add some playmaking parts in the draft. They will be a much better squad this season, and they might even surprise some people. The ship is definitely heading in the right direction, and it might arrive in port sooner than anybody expects.

With that being said, here are a few reasons Raiders fans should be optimistic about the upcoming season…

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