While the Raiders have two legit Rookie of the Year candidates on both sides of the ball, that’s an NFL award. What of the team awards? Let’s see if we can put those together. Let’s start with a couple awards you won’t see at the NFL Honors.

Top Newcomer: Offense

RT Trent Brown

Right tackle has been a revolving door in Oakland for years. In more ways than one. Last season it started with Donald Penn playing out of position and ended with Brandon Parker playing out of his league. The result was Derek Carr being sacked 51 times.

With Brown in place, Carr was sacked 29 times. And a good amount of those happened late in the season when Brown went out with a pectoral injury and Parker was put back in. As if we all needed a reminder of Brown’s value to this line. They made him the highest-paid offensive lineman in history for a reason.

Top Newcomer: Defense

DE Benson Mayowa

The top performance on defense came from rookie Maxx Crosby. But until he came into form, Mayowa was terrorizing opposing quarterbacks. He was signed late in free agency, which for a pass rusher, is shocking. Usually, even the halfway decent ones are swiped up quickly.

The journeyman Mayowa was literally an afterthought. Then he put up a career-high 7.0 sacks in the first nine games. And the Raiders went 5-4 during that time. He’s just 28, so he may be thought of a bit more come free agency this year.

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The Raiders enter the 2020 offseason with a few significant needs. The team desperately needs to find help at receiver, specifically on the outside. The Raiders also need to add another cornerback as veteran Daryl Worley is scheduled to hit the free-agent market in March.

However, their biggest need by far is at the linebacker position. It’s been several years since the Raiders have had a quality, reliable player at that position, and it’s clearly holding them back from taking the next step as a defense.

In a recent article by Maurice Moton of Bleacher Report, the linebacker position, specifically, a pass-coverage linebacker, was listed as the team’s biggest need entering the 2020 NFL draft. Take a look at Moton’s thoughts on the Raiders’ linebacker position:

The last time the Oakland Raiders had a quality fixture at middle linebacker was a decade ago: Kirk Morrison. Since then, pass-catching running backs and tight ends have gashed this defense in open space.

The Raiders don’t have a solid coverage linebacker on the roster. Tahir Whitehead fits the two-down mold. He’s far better against the run. Nicholas Morrow played safety at Greenville on the collegiate level, but his ball-tracking skills have yet to shine on the professional level.

Moton named Clemson linebacker Isaiah Simmons as a potential solution for the Raiders. If he were to be available at pick No. 12, that would be the ideal pick for the Raiders. However, expect the Raiders to explore the free-agent market for linebackers to make sure they cover their bases ahead of the 2020 draft.

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The second round of the playoffs is coming up this weekend with the winners from the wildcard round facing the top two teams in each conference who had byes in the first round. There are a total of 16 former Raiders still playing for a ring on the 8 teams still in it.

The first game on the docket has the Vikings in Santa Clara to face the 49ers Saturday afternoon. This is a rarity, actually. Last weekend, the Vikings were the only team to play that didn’t have a single former Raiders player on the roster.

Well, neither do the 49ers. Unless you count Damontre Moore who spent two games with the team before heading to the injured reserve list. The game kicks off a 1:35 Pacific (4:35 ET).

Vikings

None

49ers

None

The evening Saturday game will be the Titans at the Ravens at 5:15 Pacific (8:15 ET). The Ravens, in particular, are well stocked with former Raiders, including three original Raiders.

Titans

LB Daren Bates

WR Rashard Davis

Ravens

DT Justin Ellis (D4-14)

WR Seth Roberts (UD-14)

S Brynden Trawick

DT Jihad Ward (D2-16)

Sunday kicks off at 12:05 Pacific (3:05 ET) with the Texans in Kansas City. The Texans have the most former Raiders on their roster (5), a couple of whom played key roles in their win over the Bills last week. Taiwan Jones made the game-clinching first down catch and run and Gareon Conley had three pass breakups.

Texans

LB Tyrell Adams

CB Gareon Conley (D1-17)

RB Taiwan Jones (D4-11)

QB AJ McCarron

DT Eddie Vanderdoes (D3-17)

Chiefs

G Stefen Wisniewski (D2-11)

And finally, the Seahawks are in Green Bay to face the Packers at 3:40 pm Pacific (6:40 pm ET). Yes, Beast Mode is still going. He had a nice TD on a second effort last week to help the Seahawks beat the Eagles.

Seahawks

RB Marshawn Lynch

TE Luke Willson

Packers

WR Ryan Grant

OT Jared Veldheer (D3-10)

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The Raiders are moving in 2020, and there is a lot to be excited about with their team. Several young players, such as Josh Jacobs, Darren Waller, and Maxx Crosby, have developed into cornerstone pieces as the Raiders look to become competitive in the AFC once again.

But should fans feel confident that Mike Mayock and Jon Gruden can get this team back on track? In a recent piece by Bleacher Report, Chris Roling named each team’s biggest reason for hope entering the 2020 season. For the Raiders, their front office was praised due to their aggressiveness last offseason:

Antonio Brown didn’t work out, but it was nice to see the aggressiveness. Oakland also showed a willingness to splurge in free agency on players such as Trent Brown (four years, $66 million). Two of the team’s three 2019 first-round picks were big hits, too, highlighted by running back Josh Jacobs, who had 1,150 yards and seven scores on a 4.8 average over 13 games.

After seemingly overachieving on the field, the Raiders enter the offseason with the No. 12 pick and $69.4 million in cap space. If the moves keep trending in the right direction, there’s plenty of reason to hope for an additional bump in 2020.

While you can certainly criticize the move to trade for Antonio Brown or select Clelin Ferrell at No. 4, Mike Mayock and Jon Gruden found several key contributors on the second and third day of the draft, including Maxx Crosby, Hunter Renfrow, and Foster Moreau. Those three players alone were better than most team’s draft classes in 2019.

If the Raiders can have another offseason like the one they just had, it shouldn’t be long before the team is a legit contender in the AFC. With a nearly unlimited amount of cap space and two first-round picks, the Raiders should improve dramatically in the 2020 season.

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Several Raiders players are set to become free agents this offseason. They already locked up their two biggest priorities, signing Darren Waller and Richie Incognito to extensions. But there are still quite a few players who they should be thinking about re-signing. Here they are in tiers of what priority I see them placing on their return.

High priority

G Denzelle Good, 28

Good was in line to start at left guard until the team signed Richie Incognito. They have re-signed Incognito to a 2-year deal, but when Incognito was lost to injury late in the season, Good showed no noticeable drop-off in play at the position. He is about as good as you can get from a utility reserve guard. Bring him back, and the Raiders are set at the position.

DL Dion Jordan, 29

The moment Jordan came off his 10-week suspension by the NFL, the Raiders scooped him up. The former 3rd overall pick showed some impressive skills both as an end and as a tackle. As Gruden has said, pass rushers are hard to find. The Raiders got one in Jordan, so hold onto him.

DB Daryl Worley, 24

Worley played every position in the secondary late in the season due to injuries. He is a starting cornerback who is aggressive and tackles well. Players with his talents don’t grow on trees. The Raiders traded Gareon Conley because they were content with Worley and Trayvon Mullen as the outside starters. Let Worley go and you have a glaring hole to fill.

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If you were to look at Hunter Renfrow’s physical profile, there is nothing about him that stands out. At just 5’10, 184 pounds, he is a small receiver who lacks elite speed (4.59 40-yard dash) or great quickness.

According to 3sigmaathlete.com, Renfrow tested in just the 10th percentile of all receivers to enter the NFL draft in the last decade. But there is more to being a receiver than just being a great athlete, and he proved that this season.

In 13 games, Renfrow caught 49 passes for 605 yards and four touchdowns. By the end of the season, Renfrow was Derek Carr’s second-favorite receiver, only behind breakout tight end Darren Waller. And it’s not hard to see why Renfrow became an effective receiver for the Raiders.

According to the NFL’s Next Gen Stats, Renfrow averaged 3.5 yards of separation on every target. Only one other receiver (Diontate Johnson) averaged more during the 2019 season. To put this into perspective even further, players such as Michael Thomas, Amari Cooper, and Stefon Diggs all averaged a full yard less of separation per target.

Renfrow has always been a player who has found ways to get open despite having less than ideal measurables, and he has now shown he can do so at the highest level. Look for the former Clemson receiver to remain a big part of the Raiders’ offense going forward.

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The 2020 season prep begins as soon as the 2019 season ends. The first order of business is signing players to reserve/future deals. The Raiders have signed ten of them. Below are all the signings:

Ade Aruna, DE, Tulane
6-5, 263, 2nd year

Jordan Brown, DB, Iowa
6-0, 197, Rookie

Kendall Donnerson, DE, Southeast Missouri
6-3, 249, 1st year

Kyle Kalis, OL, Michigan
6-4, 306, 2nd year

Erik Magnuson, C, Michigan
6-6, 300, 3rd year

Dylan Mabin CB, Fordham
6-1, 195, Rookie

Anthony Ratliff-Williams, WR, North Carolina
6-1,  205, Rookie

William Stanback, RB, Virginia Union
6-0, 231, Rookie

Mark Thompson, RB, Florida
6-1, 235, 1st year

Nick Usher, LB, Texas-El Paso
6-3, 216, Rookie

What is a reserve/future deal?

It’s a contract that doesn’t count against the salary cap until the start of the league year, which is March 18. Until then, the players are on reserve, which keeps anyone else from signing them.

Why should I care?

These deals tend to go unnoticed because they are all players who were not on an NFL roster at the end of last season. Often times they’re players who were on the team’s practice squad.

But that doesn’t mean they’re all just filling roster spots. Some of these players will make some noise in the offseason and training camp and could be on the roster next season. Think of it like signing undrafted rookies after the draft is over.

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Let’s wrap up this year’s “Ballers & Busters” and put a bow on it. In a season with ups and downs, it ended with a lot more lows than highs. But even while losing five of their last six games, and squandering a golden opportunity to sneak into the playoffs (the loss to the Jaguars), there were many positives. So, as (almost) always, we will list those positive performances before moving on to the negatives.

Top Baller: RB Josh Jacobs

Seven times over the first nine games Jacobs was named a “Baller.” The final two of those times, he did it with a broken shoulder. Then he did it two more times, still nursing that broken shoulder. He was twice a “Top Baller.” Eventually, his season would be cut short by the injury, but not before he ran for 1150 yards, just eight yards shy of the fifth-best rushing mark in franchise history. He surpassed the best rookie rushing mark by midseason. He is the odds on favorite to be named Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Baller: DE Maxx Crosby

Crosby was seeing few snaps in the first quarter of the season, but once the Raiders cut him loose, he exploded. He was named a “Baller” eight times over the final 12 games of the season, and thrice a Top Baller. He just got better as the season went on too. Five of his Baller nods came over the final seven games even while the Raiders only managed two wins over that time. He finished with 10.0 sacks on the season, just a half-sack away from tying the franchise rookie record set by Greg Townsend way back in 1983.

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