The Raiders have certainly spent a ton of resources when it comes to upgrading their secondary. Since the 2016 draft, the Raiders have spent seven top-50 selections on their secondary. But yet, the unit still isn’t good enough.
During the 2020 season, the Raiders had the league’s worst defense due to their secondary. They just couldn’t get consistent play from anyone in the secondary. But the team is hopeful that they’ve made the right moves this offseason to make a leap on the back end.
In a recent article by Pro Football Focus, they ranked all 32 secondaries heading into the 2021 season. Not surprisingly, the Raiders came in near the bottom at No. 29. Here is what the site had to say about the unit entering the year:
“Las Vegas’ secondary projects to be one of the youngest units in the league. 2019 draft selections Trayvon Mullen and Johnathan Abram are the “experienced” members of a projected starting lineup that also includes 2020 first-round pick Damon Arnette at cornerback and 2021 second-round pick Trevon Moehrig at free safety. The Raiders need to see improvement out of each of Mullen, Abram and Arnette in 2021. That holds especially true for Abram (PFF’s lowest-graded safety last season) and Arnette (sixth-lowest graded cornerback last season). Casey Hayward Jr. — the lone veteran with an opportunity to start — is coming off a career-low 59.5 overall grade in 2020.”
The Raiders are hoping that one of their young corners can take a step up and that Hayward can get back to his old self under defensive coordinator Gus Bradley. The Raiders do have a lot of depth at safety with Johnathan Abram, Trevon Moehrig and Karl Joseph. Between those three, they should have the position covered.
How this young secondary develops will likely decide the outcome of the season for the Raiders. If they can gel and play well together, this defense could get much better in a hurry. But if they struggle, it could be another rough year for the Raiders.
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