Oakland Raiders: McKenzie’s 5 “Riskiest” Moves So Far This Offseason

Dec 28, 2014; Denver, CO, USA; Oakland Raiders center Stefen Wisniewski (61) lines up against the Denver Broncos in the first quarter at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Letting Stefen Wisniewski Walk

A year ago, McKenzie found himself in an eerily similar situation. A young, homegrown talent’s contract was up, but rather than pay him, McKenzie let him walk.

Last year, it was Jared Veldheer and Lamarr Houston. This year it’s Wisniewski.

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While a lot of people get caught up in the fact that McKenzie let Veldheer and Houston walk, and can’t see beyond that, the simple statistics show that he was right to do so. Veldheer’s replacement, Donald Penn, was graded out higher by Pro Football Focus. Last season, Penn was the better player and not that some folks acknowledged it, it validated McKenzie’s decision.

Same with Houston. Tuck was brought in to replace the sacks the team would be losing by watching Houston depart – which he did so, with five last year (Houston had six in 2013). Meanwhile, Houston was busy racking up one sack in eight games before blowing out his knee – while celebrating that one sack.

Over the last couple of seasons, Wisniewski’s play has declined somewhat, and he hasn’t quite seemed like the same player who was the anchor of the Raiders’ offensive line.

Seeing an opportunity to make his team better – while significantly weakening a division rival – McKenzie swooped in to snatch up C Rodney Hudson. Yeah, McKenzie may have overpaid for him a bit – 5 years, $44 million dollars – but he upgraded the offensive line tremendously.

But the Raiders have a need at guard. With veteran Khalif Barnes likely to fill that role, McKenzie rolled the dice, hoping to address that need either through free agency or the draft. Oakland may have been better served re-signing Wisniewski and then sliding him over to guard. He’s  young, versatile, and could have helped really solidify the offensive line.

If for some reason though, Hudson doesn’t pan out, or his play tapers off, McKenzie is going to be crucified as the names Veldheer and Houston are continually hurled in his face – except for the fact that the team did just fine, if not better, without either of them last season.

But if it’s all the same, we just hope Hudson has a dominant season.

Next: Signing a Draft Bust