10 Most Important Raiders Players in 2023: No. 6 Nate Hobbs

Jeff Spiegel
Jeff Spiegel
4 Min Read
Aug 14, 2022; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders coach Josh McDaniels (right) shakes hands with cornerback Nate Hobbs (39) during the game against the Minnesota Vikings at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

This post is Part Five of a series counting down the 10 most important Las Vegas Raiders players under contract for next season (not including Derek Carr). Guys set to be free agents (Josh Jacobs, Jarrett Stidham, etc.) aren’t included here. Click here for Part One, Part Two, Part Three and Part Four of this series.

No. 6: Nate Hobbs

The 2021 NFL Draft was not a weekend the Raiders and their fans will look back on fondly if we’re being honest. First-round pick Alex Leatherwood lasted one season before being cut and just 12 months after that draft, the franchise has two players from that class in a list of their top 10 most important players — linebacker Divine Deablo (No. 10) and cornerback Nate Hobbs.

Not great!

While Deablo’s inclusion is mostly a product of the talent vacuum, Hobbs is a genuine building block for a defense desperately in need of one. His rookie season was spent entirely in the slot — where he earned PFF’s highest rookie corner grade — but defensive coordinator Patrick Graham moved him all over the field in his second professional season with varying success.

2022 Stats: 57 tackles, 47 receptions allowed (65 targets), 0 interceptions, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery, 4 passes deflected

2023 Outlook

When it comes to Hobbs, the biggest project for Graham is figuring out where his talent can be maximized. As mentioned above, he was excellent as a slot corner as a rookie — but was fairly average as a hybrid inside/outside corner in 2022. Was it because of the new scheme? Was it because of poor play around him? Natural regression?

Nate Hobbs, Raiders
Oct 17, 2021; Denver, Colorado, USA; Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Nate Hobbs (39) reacts after a play in the third quarter against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

These are the questions facing the Raiders and Hobbs as he hopes to get back to the type of performances fans were accustomed to in his first season in silver and black. In today’s NFL, an argument can be made that outside of quarterback and pass rusher, corners are the most valuable position in the league — partly because of the explosion of pass-catching talent, but also because of the general dearth of defensive back depth.

For a team with dozens of roster holes, there’s a lot of pressure on Hobbs to be more of an “answer” than a question mark in 2023 and beyond. If he reverts back to what we saw in 2021, the Raiders will have the flexibility to allocate resources — both cap space and draft capital — elsewhere, leaving one of the most expensive positions held down by a guy still on his rookie deal.

Information

Jeff Spiegel was raised in California but currently resides in Portland, Oregon. After graduating from the University of Oregon, he worked in sports before entering journalism full time — first as a Sports Reporter and then as the Associate Editor of a small newspaper. Online, he has been writing about both the Raiders and Dodgers since 2012 — having written for DodgersNation.com and SBNation.com prior to joining both DodgerBlue.com and RaidersNewswire.com. He left full-time journalism in 2012 to become a pastor. Jeff can be found on Twitter at @JeffSpiegel. Favorite Raider This one is an easy one for me: Charles Woodson. When the Raiders drafted him, there was nothing to dislike about the guy — he was exciting and he was freaking good. Unfortunately, of course, he left after eight seasons — but when he returned in 2013 it was one of the better Raider moments of my lifetime. At that point, I didn't care how washed he was (and he wasn't!) — I just liked having him back in the silver and black. Obviously Tim Brown is another guy that was easy to love, but Woodson is the all-timer for me. As far as current, I'm still a believer in Derek Carr and think he's going to figure this all out. Favorite Raider Moment I think I'll go with the two weeks leading up to the 2001 Super Bowl. As a kid, I remember getting the newspaper every morning to read what they were talking about, clipping out the articles to keep for later. It was obviously far more exciting than the Super Bowl itself, but I'll never forget those moments of hope leading up to the Super Bowl. I referenced it above, but second to that was probably the return of Charles Woodson in 2013 — I just loved the guy, and never dreamed he'd actually come back.