One of the big reasons the Raiders targeted veteran linebacker Cory Littleton in free agency was due to his ability in coverage. There just aren’t many linebackers in the league that can match his ability to play in both man and zone coverage.
In a recent piece by Pro Football Focus, the site discussed at length Littleton’s domination in coverage. Take a look at what senior writer Solomon Wilcots had to say about the Littleton-Raiders pairing:
During his four seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, Littleton logged close to 1,200 coverage snaps, earning a PFF coverage grade of 87.3 — second among all linebackers who entered the NFL during 2016 with a minimum of 200 snaps. As an off-the-ball defender in the Rams’ sub-package defense, Littleton was often the only linebacker on the field with six defensive backs. With 4.73 speed, he moves well in space and matches up with underneath pass routes well enough to have earned a seventh-ranked coverage grade in both 2018 (83.1) and 2019 (82.3).
As a unit, the Raiders’ linebackers ranked 29th in coverage in 2019, partly due to a lack of speed. According to PFF, they were targeted on 155 passes plays and allowed 10 touchdowns to just one interception.
With Littleton now in the fold in Las Vegas, the Raiders should have a significantly improved pass defense. And with some of the other attentions on the defensive line and in the secondary, expect Paul Guenther’s group to be much better against the pass in 2020 with the help of Cory Littleton.
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