5 teams that could sign T.J. Ward

2. Oakland Raiders

The Oakland Raiders were dominant in the AFC West last season before Derek Carr went down just before the postseason, and they likely would have made a run in the playoffs had he stayed healthy. If T.J. Ward is looking to join an instant contender, the Raiders are one of his best bets.

Ward would provide a strong addition to the Raiders secondary that features Reggie Nelson and Karl Joseph, and the team could use Ward’s veteran presence to help Joseph mature as a safety in Oakland. He’d give them some serious physicality to work with, and help round out the Raiders’ solid defense with a mix of veterans and youth, along with speed and physicality.

Oh, and it’d definitely be a nice option to have for Ward, especially since he’d play his former Broncos twice during the season, and could potentially find himself back on top of the division with the Raiders if he were to sign with them.

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1. Pittsburgh Steelers

The Pittsburgh Steelers don’t have a ton to work with in their secondary, but they’ll still find a way to make their defense one of the best in the league regardless. However, an easy way to do that is to sign Ward and give him the chance to groom some of their younger safeties in the process.

The Steelers are working with 26-year old Robert Golden and 23-year old Sean Davis in their secondary, and Ward would give an instant veteran presence to the defense that has been lacking ever since Troy Polamalu’s departure a couple of years ago.

The Steelers are all about physical play, and Ward would bring back some fear to that defense and help give the team an extra push that could help them put up a serious threat for the AFC crown in January. Their defense, specifically the secondary, was a big piece of their loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC title game last year, and Ward could help them solve that problem quickly.