The 2019 season has been an up-and-down one for the Oakland Raiders as they currently sit at 3-4 after back-to-back losses in which their defense really struggled.
A big reason for that is a depleted linebacking corps after Vontaze Burfict was handed a season-long suspension and some other key players have missed time with injury.
Raiders head coach Jon Gruden and general manager Mike Mayock understood the team had a need at linebacker before the trade deadline and attempted to address it. Although they did not make any trades for linebackers, they did bring back a familiar face in Brandon Marshall through free agency.
Marshall is a six-year veteran that the Raiders signed in March but cut just before the regular season began. After re-signing him earlier this week, Marshall says that he needs a playbook refresher before getting ready to go, via Vic Tafur of The Athletic:
“When they cut me I just threw my playbook away. I had to re-introduce myself to some of the schemes, some of the blitzes. A lot of it’s still familiar, but I haven’t remembered it too much. I’ve got to have a refresher, because it’s tough when you’re out, you’re not sure if you’ll come back or not. I’m doing well.”
Other than the preseason this year, Marshall last saw on-field action during his 2018 campaign with the Denver Broncos. He started in seven of his 11 games played, totaling 22 solo tackles and one pass defensed.
As mentioned, Marshall brings in some much-needed depth to the Raiders group of linebackers. Currently, the Raiders only have three players listed at linebacker on their depth chart, with nobody even being listed at middle linebacker.
That being said, there is really no telling how much of a role Marshall will have across the last half of the season. He could potentially slide into the middle linebacker position, or simply play back up to strongside linebacker Tahir Whitehead or weakside linebacker Nicholas Morrow.
Additionally, Gruden has been experimenting by playing defensive specialist Lamarcus Joyner in a number of positions. With the addition of Marshall, Joyner could potentially return to just playing safety.
One area that the Raiders defense has actually excelled despite their lack of linebackers is stopping the run. Oakland has allowed just 650 yards on the ground, which is good for fourth-best in the league. That was an area that Marshall also had success in with the Broncos, so he should be able to make that even better.
