Oakland Raiders: Five free agent cornerbacks the team should consider
By Kevin Saito
A former first round pick (fourteenth overall) out of Virginia Tech in the 2014 Draft, the Bears somewhat surprisingly opted to not pick up Fuller’s fifth-year option, making him an unrestricted free agent.
Fuller is six feet, 194 pounds, and has 4.49 speed. He’s fast, athletic, long, and makes plays. Though he missed the entire 2016 season while recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery, he rebounded to have a solid 2017 campaign, starting all 16 games in which he played.
Fuller has been a starter since he was drafted, starting 46 of the 48 games he’s appeared in over his three years on the field with Chicago.
And in his time in a Bears uniform, Fuller has notched 156 tackles (126 solo), 41 passes defensed, forced three fumbles, and picked off eight passes.
Fuller has been durable and has made a ton of plays. He has struggled with consistency at times, which is likely what led the Bears to no exercise the fifth-year option on his rookie deal. But, at just 25 years old (26 in February), there’s no reason to believe that in the right situation with coaches who can play to his strengths, Fuller can’t flourish.
Fuller has tremendous upside and he’s still young. He’s still very coachable. Consistency can be a learned thing, so putting him with guys who can coach him up and teach him the right way of doing things can really tap into that potential he has.
Like others on this list, Fuller isn’t considered a top-flight, true number one cornerback, which should help to depress his contract expectations. The Raiders could get a solid value on the former first rounder and add a playmaker to the secondary.