Oakland Raiders: 6 Players Who Should Become Ex-Raiders This Offseason
By Kevin Saito
Enamored with his speed and versatility, the Raiders brought Patterson in to help revitalize their return game and add another wrinkle to the offense.
That was the original thought, anyway.
The reality of the situation though, is that serving as the team’s primary kick returner, Patterson didn’t exactly light it up. In 2016, Jalen Richard handled most of Oakland’s kick return duties. For the year, he posted an average return of 23.6 yards, with a long of 50.
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In 2017, with Patterson fielding kicks, he had an average return of 28.3 yards with a long of 49 – and no touchdowns.
On offense, Patterson filled in here and there, running plenty of gadget plays. He finished the season with 309 yards on 31 receptions, and added another 121 yards on 13 carries on the ground, and scoring his only two touchdowns of the year.
Patterson wasn’t an integral part of the offense, nor did he rejuvenate the special teams the way most thought he would when he was signed. He had some moments. He did flash here and there, but, it’s hard to argue that his contributions were actually worth the $5 million plus he made in 2017.
Moving forward, the Raiders should part ways with Patterson and the $3 million plus he stands to earn in 2018. Shedding his salary from the books will help add to the warchest Gruden and GM Reggie McKenzie will need to draw some top talent to Oakland.
Kinda makes you think they should have taken a longer look at letting Jaydon Mickens return some kicks before cutting him, huh?