Oakland Raiders: OffSeason Upgrades Lead to High Expectations
The Oakland Raiders haven’t reached the playoffs or had a winning record since 2002. But with the recent influx of talent, the Silver and Black have made one thing very clear, its “Playoff Time” in Raider Nation.
Its been a long time since the Oakland Raiders have entered an NFL season with so much promise and heightened expectations. No one in the Raider Nation could have known that following the 2002 season — a season in which the Raiders went 11-5, on their way to a Division Championship and Super Bowl appearance (no need to bring up the details of that game) — it would be almost 15 years between winning seasons.
The Raiders have seen their fair share of head coaches and starting quarterbacks put on those legendary Silver-and-Black uniforms and declare that a “New Day” has finally arrived.
The problem was the talent in the locker room wasn’t ample enough to facilitate a “New Day.” However, with the recent influx of new talent brought into the organization via free-agency and recent drafts, the Raiders could now realistically be approaching that new glorious day of restoring the pride of one of the NFL’s most iconic franchises.
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Raiders’ General Manager Reggie McKenzie entered the offseason with the primary goal of upgrading a less than stellar defense with a mixture of young as well as already proven NFL talent. McKenzie knew the Raiders couldn’t make the necessary strides needed to become a true contender without upgrading a porous secondary unit — a unit that was losing its standout Hall-Of-Fame leader,Charles Woodson, who was more than just an All Pro safety.
Woodson was a mentor on and off the field, who not only spoke about what it took to be a great NFL player, but one whose own play backed up those words. So Woodson’s departure will be felt throughout the organization and not just on the field.
Replacing a legend like Charles Woodson can’t be accomplished by bringing in a singular player or even several players and McKenzie knew this. His plan was to upgrade the talent level at numerous positions through free agency, and also through a draft that many NFL insiders saw enriched with potential defensive stars.
The Raiders main liability throughout the 2015-16 season was on the defensive side of the ball. A weak secondary that had a penchant for giving up the big-play and far too often seemed to shy away from physical play, resulting in numerous miss tackles that led to big plays.
The secondary was in dire need of an overhaul. One of the free agent hits McKenzie made was in inking former Cincinnati Bengals’ standout Reggie Nelson, whose ball hawking skills helped him to a league leading eight interceptions during the 2015 campaign. The 10-year veteran will provide a young secondary with somebody to help fill the leadership void left by the retirement of Woodson.
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The Raiders were also looking to upgrade the play of their cornerbacks, given the disappointing play of D.J. Hayden and inconsistency of the unit as a whole. One of the most highly regarded cornerbacks in this year’s free-agency class was Sean Smith. Smith had spent the previous three seasons with Oakland’s hated rival, the Kansas City Chiefs, after being drafted by the Miami Dolphins in 2009.
Smith gives the Raiders’ defense a much needed physical presence on the outside. Standing 6’3″ and hovering around 220 pounds, he is one of the most physical corners in the league. In an era of big speedy receivers, Smiths’ ability to go toe-to-toe with some of the bigger outside targets will definitely be a welcomed addition to a secondary that far too often were the recipients of punishment rather than the ones dishing it out.
Free agency wasn’t the only source the Raiders used to upgrade their secondary. With their first pick in the 2016 NFL draft (14th overall) the Raiders selected Karl Joseph. Joseph is a hard-hitting safety out of the University of West Virginia, whose has the on-field reputation of being a prototypical hard-hitting safety, with man cover ability and above average ball skills.
Next: Oakland Raiders Grab A Couple
The transformation of the Raiders from cellar dwellers to perennial playoff contender isn’t complete obviously, but for the first time in over a decade the Silver and Black have a realistic reason for optimism and high expectations.