Oakland Raiders center Rodney Hudson was named an AP Second-Team All-Pro for the first time in his career after a stellar 2019 NFL season.
The Raiders may have failed to follow through on the hype they generated early in the year, however, they can at least take solace in the fact that they were able to get some return on the investment they made along the offensive line. One of the biggest reasons for their resurgence upfront is thanks in large part to Hudson’s efforts.
Oakland has brought in a number of new faces in recent years in order to shore up the protection for quarterback Derek Carr while having the potential to dominate any line of scrimmage on a weekly basis. They used a first-round pick on left tackle Kolton Miller, made Trent Brown the highest-paid offensive lineman in the league before putting him at right tackle, and even opted to give left guard Richie Incognito a clean slate to work with at a turning point in his career.
Unfortunately, this group largely struggled to stay healthy throughout the course of the 2019 campaign and Hudson was forced to serve as a stabilizing factor in order to keep them afloat.
It is safe to say that he justified their decision to make him the highest-paid center in the league in the offseason with a three-year, $33.75 million contract extension after allowing just three quarterback pressures, one quarterback hit, two hurries and zero sacks.
Hudson received nine votes for first-team All-Pro honors, which slotted him behind the 25 votes that Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce received. Regardless, the veteran was still able to add another impressive accomplishment to a resume that already includes three trips to the Pro Bowl over the last four seasons.
His efforts not only kept Carr clean this season but they also helped running back Josh Jacobs establish himself as the frontrunner for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.
