Two weeks ago, the Raiders made it official with Vic Beasley, signing him to the active roster. They had elevated him from the practice squad each of the previous two weeks and clearly wanted to have him on the field the rest of the season, so they just signed him. The question now is if the season finale will be his last with the Raiders.
“As far as being a part of the Raiders’ future, I am open to whatever,” said Beasley of whether he wants to return. “I’m just going to go out there right now and perform to the best of my abilities Sunday and help them get the eighth win. And whatever the future holds, whether it’s here with the Raiders or wherever else, I’m fine with it, but I’m just going to try to put my best foot forward.”
The former All-Pro has 37.5 career sacks, but the Raiders are his third team in the past year. He was with the Falcons in 2019 but was not brought back despite eight sacks. He signed on in Tennessee where he appeared in just five games before being waived. Then he received no interest in the waiver wire, or even from teams looking to sign him to the active roster.
That’s a steep fall for a former first-round pick who was once on the top of the NFL world. Something Beasley said has helped him develop mental toughness. He also says his main issue of late has been his health, which he said was going to be his primary focus this offseason.
“I’ve got some injuries, some nicks, some things that I really need to get taken care of,” Beasley said. “If I get healthy I feel like I can be back where I want to be and play at a level I want to play at. To help a team compete for a Super Bowl.”
Before he does that, he will have one more shot to put himself on display for the Raiders and the rest of the NFL. And with the injury situation on the Raiders right now, he should get plenty of opportunities.
“We’re trying to focus our vision here on some of these new players,” Jon Gruden said. “Unfortunately [Takkarist] McKinley won’t be able to play, unfortunately David Irving won’t be able to play. Fortunately, we will be able to see Vic Beasley play again. I think his availability and his background in the league as a pass rusher is exciting. Hopefully, he can answer the bell and be a big part of our future here. But I’m not going to make any more predictions. We still have some evaluating to do and I know Vic Beasley has potential and he has tons of talent and we’re going to keep looking for it.”
McKinley was brought in around the same time as the Raiders signed Beasley and Irving was signed earlier in the season. All of them were brought on board with the hopes of rekindling previous pass-rushing successes. While 2019 top pick Clelin Ferrell was looking to take a step forward in his second season. Now Beasley is the only one of them who will take the field Sunday.
With Ferrell sent to injured reserve Wednesday, the starting defensive ends are expected to be Maxx Crosby and Carl Nassib with Beasley and Arden Key rotating in to try and provide additional pass rush help.
With just one tackle in four games with the Raiders as his only stat in Silver & Black, anything would be a step up for Beasley in his quest to return to relevance. Though it sounds like anything but a given that that return will be in Las Vegas.
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