The Oakland Raiders have made a lot of upgrades to their offensive personnel this offseason, but one position they have still yet to address is running back.
Marshawn Lynch was the team’s primary starter a season ago and while him coming back to the team for one more season cannot be ruled out, it is unclear if he has any desires in continuing to play football.
The Raiders were linked to the top free agent running back, Le’Veon Bell, at times, but he instead decided to sign with the New York Jets.
There aren’t many big names left on the free agent market, but one running back that could fit in with the Raiders is the player that Bell is replacing in New York, Isaiah Crowell. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Crowell is set to meet with the Raiders in Oakland on Thursday:
Former #Jets RB and now free agent Isaiah Crowell is set to visit the #Raiders on Thursday, source said. Jon Gruden, in particular, is hoping to add him to the RB room.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 27, 2019
Crowell played in 13 games for the Jets last year, carrying the ball 143 times for 685 yards and six touchdowns while adding 21 receptions for 152 yards. In his five-year NFL career, Crowell had averaged 4.3 yards per carry.
The Raiders have three first round picks in the upcoming 2019 NFL Draft, so they will likely use one of them on one of the top running backs. Signing a veteran like Lynch or Crowell to compliment whoever that rookie is though could make for a very formidable running back rotation.
