Oakland Raiders: Top 3 takeaways from the team’s initial round of cuts

1. Nicholas Morrow is the starting weak-side linebacker

Perhaps the most noteworthy and surprising news coming out of Friday was the news that broke first. That being that the Raiders opted to release veteran linebacker Brandon Marshall before he ever played in a regular-season game with the team.

Marshall was signed in the offseason after six seasons spent with the Raiders division rivals, the Denver Broncos. The soon-to-be 30-year-old had been a part of one of the better defenses in the NFL for years but age and injuries had caught up with him.

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Still, the hope was that Marshall would step in and be the team’s starting weak-side linebacker from Week 1. Paired with the likes of Tahir Whitehead and Vontaze Burfict, the Raiders would have an experienced trio of veteran linebackers in the middle of their defense.

But Oakland clearly had some second thoughts and decided against retaining Marshall. Instead, it looks like the team is going to go young at the position.

Former undrafted free agent Nicholas Morrow is the player that most assume will be given the first crack at the starting role. Morrow has played all 32 games over the past two seasons making 10 starts during that timeframe.

The 24-year-old has impressed with his coverage ability and could be a good fit in the team’s nickel package as a sub linebacker. We could also see a bit of Marquel Lee at the spot, although he doesn’t have quite as high of a ceiling as Morrow.

But with Marshall out of the picture, this should be Morrow’s job to lose.