Las Vegas Raiders
It is often difficult to get a read on Jon Gruden and Mike Mayock as the decision-makers for the Raiders organization. They’ve made some truly baffling moves over the past two offseasons, but they’ve also made some brilliant ones. And the Raiders are in a better position long-term than they were before Gruden got there. Furthermore, Gruden had them within playoff contention despite dealing with a poor, still-rebuilding roster.
The Raiders made an important move at the quarterback position in free agency, signing Marcus Mariota to compete with the struggling Derek Carr, who has been holding back the team after once being a legitimate MVP candidate.
Mariota will either be an elite backup who pushes Carr to his previous heights, or he’ll steal the show like Ryan Tannehill did last season. It’s possible both quarterbacks struggle in 2020, but the Raiders are smart to hedge their bets on two quarterbacks with past success and obvious talent. Between the two of them, Mariota is the better player and seems to be favored by Gruden and Mayock.
Las Vegas made some other strong moves. Nelson Agholor wasn’t an effective outside receiver or starter in Philadelphia, but he’s quietly good in the slot. Nick Kwiatkowski is a difference-maker and playmaker at the linebacker position. Cory Littleton is even better and could end up being one of the best coverage linebackers of his generation. The Raiders also added some solid role players to their defense in Maliek Collins, Jeff Heath, Eli Apple, and Carl Nassib.
If there was one bad move, it was paying the over-the-hill Jason Witten nearly $5 million. But Gruden has to. have his veteran players, so at least the Raiders aren’t making a commitment beyond 2020 to one of the NFL’s worst tight ends.
Littleton, Kwiatkowski, and Mariota ensure Las Vegas receive high marks this year.
Grade: A