After a 7-9 finish to a 2019 season full of ups and downs, the Las Vegas Raiders are hoping to turn things around in 2020 and they have a young-talented team to do so.
To do so though, they will have to improve on the defensive side of the ball. Although there was some impressive play from the team’s defensive line in 2019, the linebacking corps and secondary were both areas of concern.
The Raiders traded cornerback Gareon Conley, lost safety Johnathan Abram to injury and linebacker Vontaze Burfict to suspension after just four games last season. All of that adds up to just nine interceptions on the year and the eighth-worst passing defense in the NFL.
After Burfict was suspended for play detrimental to player safety, the Raiders were left with limited options at linebacker. Tahir Whitehead and Nicholas Morrow led the way, with Lamarcus Joyner pitching in at practically any defensive position, including linebacker when needed. Of course, the results were not great, and according to Vic Tafur of The Athletic, the Raiders are considering letting go of Whitehead this offseason:
It doesn’t appear that team captain Tahir Whitehead will return. He just didn’t make a lot of plays and the Raiders can save $6.25 million against the salary cap by cutting him.
While Whitehead was not a very dynamic player in 2019, he did lead the team in tackles for the second straight year. Unfortunately, that was about all he did as he did not record a sack or interception, with just one pass deflection.
Whitehead just completed his second season with the Raiders after six years with the Detroit Lions. He was signed to a three-year, $18 million contract in 2018.
Morrow, who is entering his fourth year, recorded one interception, four pass deflections and 64 solo tackles, good for the third-most on the team. He is only in his third year but may become somebody the Raiders turn to moving forward. Morrow started eight games this past season, coming off the bench in the first and last four.
It was also recently reported that Los Angeles Rams linebacker Cory Littleton is somebody the Raiders could target in free agency. Littleton is entering free agency for the first time in his career after a strong season with two interceptions and 78 solo tackles.
Linebacker remains one of the Raiders weakest points on their depth chart. Bringing in somebody of Littleton’s skillset would certainly bolster the roster, especially if Morrow can continue to improve. While losing Whitehead would be difficult for the locker room, hopefully the Raiders have somebody in mind to fill that positional gap on the field.
