The Las Vegas Raiders opted to part ways with right tackle Trent Brown as part of their efforts to switch up the offensive line.
The Raiders had high hopes for Brown after signing him to a lucrative four-year, $66 million contract in free agency leading up to the 2019 campaign. After all, he had been coming off an impressive tenure with the New England Patriots and was poised to serve as the anchor of this revamped front in Las Vegas.
Unfortunately, Brown failed to provide any bang for his buck over an injury-plagued two seasons with the Silver and Black. As a result, he was ultimately traded back to the Patriots along with a seventh-round draft choice in exchange for a fifth-round pick.
Several factors played into Brown’s unsuccessful stint with the Raiders. According to Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Brown revealed that it simply was not the right setting for him.
“I wasn’t really feeling the place of work, I guess you could say,” Brown said.
Brown added that playing for the Raiders did not carry the same prestige for him as when he was with the Patriots.
“No hard feelings to them or anything, but I guess you could just say it wasn’t a good fit,” Brown said of his time with the Raiders. “And I felt like I wanted to be back somewhere where I’ve worn a lot of jerseys in my life, but I’ve never been more proud than when I put on the Patriots jersey.”
It is encouraging to see that there is no sense of bad blood between Brown and the Raiders. Of course, this hardly comes as any surprise since they overpaid for his services with $36.25 million for 16 appearances in 32 games.
On the other hand, Brown’s comments indicate that Las Vegas may still have some work to do when establishing a strong team culture both on and off the field. This is hardly a positive sign that this team is poised to take that next step in the 2021 NFL season.
The Raiders managed to alleviate some of the turnover up front by bringing back Denzelle Good and Richie Incognito. Even if the veterans offer up some continuity along the offensive line, finding Brown’s long-term successor may likely be a point of emphasis moving forward.
