Oakland Raiders: Best free agent moves of the Reggie McKenzie era
By Kevin Saito
Rodney Hudson (2015)
In 2015, McKenzie made his second move to shore up what had been a disaster of an offensive line by snatching the best center on the open market.
After spending four years in Kansas City, McKenzie lured the six-foot-two, 291 pound center to the East Bay with a five-year, $44.5 million dollar deal.
Now, entering his fourth year with the team, Hudson has formed one of the best quarterback/center batteries in the league. Hudson has been one of the very best centers in the NFL over his seven seasons in the league and doesn’t appear to be slowing down at all.
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Hudson anchors what has become one of the best lines in football. Well, when used properly. He’s cut from the same mold as Kelechi Osemele – tough, rugged, nasty, and will punch you in the mouth.
Hudson’s annual $8.9 million dollar salary can still be considered something of a bargain, given that he’s only the eighth highest paid center in the league.
For reference, in terms of salary, he sits behind Dallas’ Travis Frederick ($13.235M/yr.), Atlanta’s Alex Mack ($11.050M/yr.), Pittsburgh’s Maurkice Pouncey ($10.551M/yr.), Carolina’s Ryan Kalil ($9.654M/yr.), Jacksonville’s Brandon Linder ($9.406M/yr.), Miami’s Mike Pouncey ($9M/yr.), and Buffalo’s Eric Wood ($8.652M/yr.).
Suffice it to say, Hudson has outperformed his contract, given the money going to the seven guys above him on that list. And that’s something McKenzie will likely need to take into account when he’s an unrestricted free agent following the 2019 season.
There is no question though, that McKenzie got tremendous value when he signed Hudson to his deal, making it one of the best free agency signings of his tenure.