The Las Vegas Raiders have many holes to fill on their roster this offseason as they look to rebuild after a rough 2025 season that saw them finish with the worst record in the NFL. One area they need to improve is the secondary and the team is already working towards that.
The Raiders already re-signed one of the few bright spots on defense in cornerback Eric Stokes, and now they have swung a trade to bring more talent into the fold, trading a sixth-round pick to the Buffalo Bills for veteran cornerback Taron Johnson and a seventh-round pick, via Ian Rapaport of NFL Network:
Trade: The #Raiders are trading for #Bills veteran CB Taron Johnson, sources say. It's a 6/7 pick swap.
Johnson was announced as a release, but not officially on the wire yet. Las Vegas pounces. pic.twitter.com/B0oY28Uebp
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 9, 2026
A fourth-round pick back in 2018, Johnson has spent his entire career with the Bills to this point, but was set to be released. However, while the Bills announced their intentions, they hadn’t made the move official yet which allowed the Raiders to come in and make the trade for a late-round pick.
Johnson appeared in 113 games for the Bills, totaling 572 tackles, 48 passes defensed, six interceptions and eight forced fumbles in his career. He works primarily as the nickel cornerback, and no team played in nickel more than the Bills last season. Johnson was also a second-team All-Pro in 2023.
For the Raiders this is an easy move to make as it improves the depth of this secondary and gives them a reliable slot corner that they can count on. While not a groundbreaking move, it is these kinds of acquisitions that really can help to solidify a defense and improve the team’s overall depth, which for the Raiders is important and necessary progress.
Raiders agree to trade Maxx Crosby to Ravens for two first-round picks
Of course, this entire Raiders defense will have a new look in 2026 after the franchise agreed to trade star defensive end and team leader Maxx Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens for first-round picks in 2026 and 2027.
