The cornerback position is suddenly a very crowded spot for the Raiders. The team signed multiple veterans this offseason and return two 2020 draft picks in Damon Arnette. That could lead to the Raiders trading one of their veteran players for a late-round draft pick.
One player that could potentially be on the block is Nevin Lawson, who has the ability to play in the slot and on the outside. He has started 68 games during his NFL career, playing for both the Lions and Raiders.
In a recent article by Alex Ballentine of Bleacher Report, he named Lawson as a potential trade candidate in the next few months. Here is a snippet of his thoughts on why the Raiders could move on from Lawson:
“2021 fifth-round pick Nate Hobbs has drawn early praise. Paul Gutierrez of ESPN recently called him his surprise player to know from the Raiders’ minicamp, noting how he impressed while working in the slot alongside Robertson and Nevin Lawson.
If that trend continues it could make Lawson obsolete in the secondary. With veterans like Hayward and Douglas on the roster, it isn’t as though they need to keep him around just for the sake of having experience. The 30-year-old has been a consistent contributor over the last two seasons, but his usefulness in Vegas may be over.”
Lawson will be suspended for the first two weeks of the season due to performance-enhancing drugs. That, in itself, could make a trade difficult. But if Nate Hobbs or Amik Robertson win the starting slot job, the Raiders might have to consider trading away Lawson for some sort of asset.
Keep an eye on the Lawson situation this offseason as he could be an appealing veteran cornerback for a number of teams.
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