Oakland Raiders’ Young Corners A Source Of Anxiety And Optimism

When the 2014 season ended, Oakland Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie made something of an unexpected decision – he was going with youth on the corners.

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In a fantasy football driven era when quarterbacks are flinging the ball at unbelievable rates, having a good tandem on the corners isn’t just good to have, it’s essential. Simply put, if you don’t get good play from your corners, your defense is in a world of hurt.

Following a disappointing end to the 2014 season in which the Raiders finished with the league’s nineteenth ranked passing defense, giving up almost 240 yards per game, while allowing opposing quarterbacks to complete almost 64 percent of their passes, McKenzie decided change was needed.

He allowed Carlos Rogers – who gave the team next to nothing thanks to injury – and Tarell Brown – who actually played fairly well for Oakland in 2014 – to walk away as free agents. McKenzie let it be known pretty early on that he was entrusting the Raiders’ defensive secondary to youngsters D.J. Hayden – McKenzie’s former first round pick who has thus far, not lived up to his billing – and Travis Carrie – McKenzie’s seventh rounder in 2014 who shocked everybody with his play.

It was – and continues to be – a source of much grumbling and concern for Raiders’ fans. Ask any fan out there which position group is considered to the weak link on Oakland’s defense, and without a doubt, most, if not all, will tell you it’s the cornerbacks. And given the track record to this point, it’s hard to argue with the concern.

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Hayden is entering his third season in the league and has thus far, started just ten games in that time. Injuries have limited him and slowed his development. Carrie came out of nowhere last season and really began turning heads. He was a seventh rounder most had pegged to be returning kicks on special teams thanks to his speed. However, he had other plans and showed that he can be a legit NFL corner. But he has just four starts to his credit.

That’s a total of fourteen total starts between the pair, if you’re scoring at home. It’s not the sort of resume from a starting cornerback duo that normally elicits a lot of confidence.

But both Hayden and Carrie have the potential to be very good, if not tremendous corners in the league. They have a ton of raw talent, and pretty good ball instincts. They’ve both made some pretty amazing plays in their relatively short time on the field, and have shown they have a ton of potential.

Speaking about Hayden, Raiders’ HC Jack Del Rio had this to say:

"“You see his feet and he’s got really good feet. He’s super quick. This is a hard-working football team. … I like the way DJ has approached his work thus far.”"

And more importantly, Hayden has managed to stay healthy thus far. It was during offseason OTA’s that Hayden suffered a foot injury that cost him the first half of the season.

Though both Hayden and Carrie have raw talent and potential oozing out of every pore though, they have something even more important that will help them take that next step, and perhaps even make Raiders’ fans wonder why they’d been concerned about Oakland’s young corners in the first place.

They have not just one, but two Woodsons to rely on for knowledge and mentoring.

And these aren’t just any old Woodsons, mind you. Rod Woodson is an eleven time Pro Bowler, six time All Pro, and oh yeah, a Hall of Famer. The other is of course, the seemingly ageless Charles Woodson, who is an eight time Pro Bowler, seven time All Pro, and is an absolute lock to be voted into the Hall of Fame.

Both played cornerback at a very high level for a lot of years – obviously, Charles is still playing, while Rod is the assistant defensive backs coach in Oakland. It makes for a very serious one-two, player and coach teaching punch.

With both Woodsons walking around, you would almost have to be going out of your way not to learn something about how to play cornerback in the NFL from them.

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But to their credit, both Hayden and Carrie are soaking in as much from both men as they possibly can as they prepare to take over responsibility for keeping opposing receivers out of the endzone on Sundays.

Said Carrie in an interview with Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com:

"“I almost have a full book of notes that I just grasped from them two. Some of it came previously from Charles last year, but now having both Woodsons this year is great. You have a sense that every question you could imagine asking, they have the answer to it. It’s really up to you as a person, as an athlete to say that I’m going utilize them as much as possible as a backbone to certain situations, how I should play and my technique and how they view things within their careers. That’s a huge factor.”"

The presence of both Charles and Rod Woodson in Oakland’s defensive backs room is only going to help a group of cornerbacks who are incredibly green. With just four years of NFL service – all in backup duties – James Dockery and the recently re-signed Chimdi Chekwa are the old men of the group. The rest of the cornerback unit is filled out with second year man Keith McGill, third year player Neiko Thorpe, and this year’s seventh round selection, Dexter McDonald.

Though all of Oakland’s young corners are going to benefit from the experience and wisdom of the Woodsons, the primary focus is going to be on Hayden and Carrie, how they’re processing and utilizing the knowledge being passed on, and how they continue to develop.

Though both have tremendous potential and huge upside, both also made a number of boneheaded mistakes that young players often make. But too much is relying on them this year for them to repeat those mistakes.

A retooled and upgraded front seven is going to help ease some of the burden and take some of the pressure off Hayden and Carrie, but there will be times they are alone on an island. It’s in those times that McKenzie and Del Rio are hoping to see that they’ve learned from the Woodsons, and that they are stepping up and making the plays when the team absolutely needs them.

It’s in those times, McKenzie and Del Rio are hoping to see that their faith in their young corners is not in vain.

Having such a youth and inexperience on the corners is going to make for some very anxious moments for Oakland’s coaches and fans alike. There will undoubtedly be some mistakes as we can expect other teams to test them as much as they can.

But that’s where the Raiders are hoping that the experience and tutelage of one Hall of Famer and one soon to be Hall of Famer kicks in and takes over. That’s where McKenzie and Del Rio are hoping to see their faith repaid many times over.

If Oakland is going to have success in 2015, they will have to be able to shut down the opposing passing game. Simply put, Hayden and Carrie absolutely, positively must perform. The Raiders rolled the dice in a big way this offseason, and are hoping that gamble doesn’t come up snake eyes.

Next: Raiders Have Clear Path to AFC West Title In 2015