Last year the Raiders, flush with the highest amount of cap room of any team in the NFL, chose quantity over quality by eschewing most of the big-name free agents available and instead going for players that were once productive but looked like they may be slowing due to age.
The strategy made a sort of sense because the team needed a large number of players from free agency due to McKenzie’s continued housecleaning but it left many fans dissatisfied and produced mixed results, at best.
This season, however, GM Reggie McKenzie is signaling that his focus in free agency will shift to quality over quantity.
The Raiders are flush with cap money again – if they cut or trade veterans like Matt Schaub, Maurice Jones-Drew and Lamarr Woodley they are projected to have something close to $70 million in cap space – and they must spend it as they well below the target 90% average that each team must spend relative to the cap over the specified 4-year period.
At the Combine in Indianapolis, McKenzie spoke to assembled writers and confirmed that he is likely to be going a different path for Free Agency in 2015.
“[Last season] I felt like we need more role players. Now we’re looking for some guys who can come in and be impact (players). Be starters,” McKenzie said. He added, “I’m looking for less volume that way. I don’t need as many backup players. We need to get stronger. We’re going to go after some real players.”
So who might the Raiders target in free agency? The rumors and connections are already swirling.
Rodney Hudson, Center, Kansas City: We are 10 days from free agency and the Raiders have not come to terms with Stefan Wisniewski, their center for the last 3 seasons. Reportedly they aren’t even close to coming to terms.
Not coincidentally, the Raiders are reportedly interested in Hudson as they start gearing up for the free agency period.
Hudson is the same age as Wizniewski, 25, and many believe him to be a superior player than Wisniewski, myself included.
PFF rated Hudson the 3rd best Center in 2014. For comparison, Wisniewski was the 22nd ranked Center in 2014 by PFF although he bumps up to 14th if you take out players who didn’t have a comparable number of snaps.
The two are close in run blocking, with Hudson edging Wisniewski only slightly – 4.7 to 3.5.
It’s in pass blocking that Hudson really excelled over Wisniewski and the difference was enough to bring Wisniewski’s overall grade down to -2.5 and take Hudson’s overall grade up to 13.0.
Clearly, Hudson projects to be an upgrade over Wisniewski. The Raiders have cap room and interest – it all makes too much sense.
Ndamukong Suh, Defensive Tackle, Detroit: First of all, McKenzie loves Suh despite his character concerns so if Suh hits the open market in a week, I would not be surprised to see the Raiders take a shot at signing him.
Suh is the highest impact player in free agency this year, if he makes it there, and there will be many teams bidding on him. Knowing McKenzie’s adherence to how he values players, I’m not convinced that the Raiders would be the highest bidder for him. Plus, there’s a chance that Suh is still hit with the Franchise Tag, an option that Detroit is reportedly still considering.
Terrance Knighton, Defensive Tackle, Denver: “I want to be wherever Jack [Del Rio] is. I’ll just leave it at that.” This statement was given to the AP’s Arnie Stapleton by Knighton in January. Knighton was drafted by Del Rio when he was the head coach of the Jaguars and he followed Del Rio to Denver when Del Rio was ousted in Jacksonville.
Del Rio recently reciprocated the respect saying, “Obviously, we drafted him (in Jacksonville). We thought at that time he was a dancing bear type. A big powerful man who could stay on his feet. This game is about big powerful men so that guys that have the skill level can do their things.
“This big powerful man played well in Jacksonville. We got back together and he played well in Denver. I appreciate that. I respect that. We have to have those kind of people in our trenches on the offensive and defensive line in order to play the kind of football we expect to play.”
With the respect the two share, it would be a surprise if Knighton did not end up in Oakland. The pairing makes too much sense. The Raiders can use more help at defensive tackle and Knighton would continue to play for Del Rio.
Randall Cobb, Wide Receiver, Green Bay: Cobb is another logical connection to Oakland based on need and the fact that Reggie McKenzie has shown a preference for former Packers in his time in Oakland.
Cobb is young, only 24, and is much more dynamic than any receiver currently on the Raiders’ roster. The Packers are reportedly making a push to retain him but he is expected to hit the open market because they think that he believes his market in free agency will be brisk enough to make it worth leaving the team.
McKenzie would be wise to grab Cobb if he hits the open market and isn’t looking to break the bank. Cobb may or may not be able to serve as a true #1 receiver – I have my doubts that he can- but he’s still a substantial upgrade over anyone currently on Oakland’s receiving corps.
If the Raiders were able to sign him for a reasonable amount and still drafted one of the top receivers in the NFL Draft, their receiving corps would go from being a joke to a threat.
Julius Thomas, Tight End, Denver: Thomas grew up a Raiders fan and has already sent out some signals to the team that he would be interested in playing for the team next season. He is young at 26, and has learned under Peyton Manning what it takes to be an elite player.
Now, for the negative: He reportedly wants elite tight end money which is a problem because despite his numbers there is a big question of whether he was a product of Manning’s system like previous tight ends in Indy Dallas Clark or Ben Utecht. Thomas also has injury concerns after dealing with ankle injuries most of last season.
There appears to be a strong market for Thomas already with Jacksonville reportedly interested in signing him. My guess is that the Raiders pass on Thomas as they already have a similar player in Mychal Rivera – a tight end who is more receiver than blocker. The Raiders need a more complete tight end than Thomas.
Jerry Hughes, Defensive End, Buffalo: Hughes is a former 1st round pick with Indianapolis who was traded to Buffalo in a rare player for player swap because he was so disappointing with the Colts. Since then, he has turned himself around and averaged 10 sacks and 40 QB hurries over the last two years.
Hughes, at 6’2” and 254 lbs, does not have what I would call prototypical size for the defensive end position but he has shown that he can be productive. The question is: how much of his success was being surrounded by players like Marcell Darrius, Mario Williams, Kyle Williams and, last year, Kiko Alonzo?
Greg Hardy, Defensive End, Carolina: Unlike Jerry Hughes, Hardy is a physical specimen at defensive ending, standing an impressive 6’4” 274 lbs. Unfortunately, Hardy has a lot of off-field baggage that he will bring with him.
In fact, at this point he’s not even able to sign with a team because he’s still listed as being on the Commissioner’s Exempt List. He was placed on the list after being charged with Domestic Violence resulting from an incident in which he allegedly assaulted and threatened his ex-girlfriend. The case was recently dropped after Hardy reached a monetary settlement agreement with the woman and she agreed not to testify against him.
He has talent but he seemingly does not fit into Reggie McKenzie’s character exceptions of guys who acted out when they were young and have now worked to turn themselves around. I think the team passes on Hardy.
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