The Carolina Panthers made a huge splash on Friday, sending wide receiver DJ Moore and a package of picks to the Chicago Bears for the No. 1 spot in the 2023 NFL Draft. Teams like the Las Vegas Raiders will deal with the ripple effects, starting with free agency.
Will general manager Dave Ziegler take an aggressive approach to the open market with three quarterbacks likely to go in the top four picks? Does he place an emphasis on a defense that finished in the bottom-fourth in points and yards allowed last season and take the fourth or fifth-best signal-caller in this year’s draft class?
Before we turn our attention to the draft, remember that free agency will likely alter the Raiders’ offseason strategy for the next several weeks.
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With the legal tampering period set to start Monday at noon ET, here’s a rundown of which names may cross the Raiders’ radar. The free agents are grouped into three types of options: high cost, most realistic and bargain bin. The most realistic options are a mix of players who may have moderate-to-high market value.
Here are 15 Raiders free-agent options to keep an eye on next week.
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High-cost targets for Las Vegas Raiders
Javon Hargrave, defensive tackle
Coming off his best season with career highs in sacks (11) and tackles for loss (10), Javon Hargrave just turned 30 years old in February, and he’s one of the league’s top pass-rushing defensive tackles. Hargrave isn’t a flash-in-the-pan playmaker who had an outlier campaign in 2022, his numbers have surged through three years with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Last offseason, the Raiders signed defensive tackle Bilal Nichols to a two-year, $11 million contract ($7.1 million guaranteed), but he made few impact plays on pass-rushing downs.
In 2019, with the Miami Dolphins, Patrick Graham had Christian Wilkins. He had Leonard Williams and Dexter Lawrence in two seasons with the New York Giants. Don’t be surprised if Ziegler pays big money for a playmaking 300-plus-pounder to satisfy his defensive coordinator.
Germaine Pratt, linebacker
The Raiders may go young at linebacker after they failed to reach a new contract agreement with Denzel Perryman:
If Vegas pivots from Perryman, it should consider Germaine Pratt, who may not be as physically gifted as free-agent linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, but he’s experienced significant growth over the past few seasons.
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In 2022, Pratt made strides in his coverage ability, allowing a 62.1 passer rating when targeted. Moreover, he allowed just 7.8 yards per completion at a 62.5 percent rate, his stingiest marks in four terms. He missed just five tackles (4.8 percent of his attempts), which is important when you consider the Raiders’ recent issues with poor tackling or missed tackles.
Edmunds will have plenty of suitors on the open market, but Vegas can sign Pratt for a lesser price and still get an ascending every-down defender. He’s also seven years younger than Lavonte David, a popular name within the Raiders fanbase.
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C.J. Gardner-Johnson, defensive back
Graham can use C.J. Gardner-Johnson as a chess piece across the back end of the defense. This past season with the Philadelphia Eagles, the versatile defensive back had a career year in mostly a deep safety role, but he served as the New Orleans Saints’ primary slot defender for three campaigns (2019-2021).
The Raiders forced the fewest turnovers last season (13); they desperately need a ball hawk, and Gardner-Johnson can fill that void. He’s one of four players who led the NFL in interceptions with six for the 2022 term.
With an impact playmaker in the secondary like Gardner-Johnson, Vegas can combat quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert and perhaps an improved Russell Wilson next season.
Jamel Dean, cornerback
As of Saturday, Vegas hasn’t re-signed cornerback Rock Ya-Sin, who had a decent year before a knee injury derailed his 2022 campaign, which leaves Nate Hobbs and Amik Robertson as the top cornerbacks on the depth chart.
Under Graham, Robertson improved, but his height disadvantage still limits him in some matchups. Hobbs had his fair share of struggles before a hand injury and allowed a 120.2 passer rating in an expanded inside-outside role after a year primarily in the slot under former defensive coordinator Gus Bradley.
Vegas will likely draft a cornerback, though the front office can sign a surefire starter in Jamel Dean. At times, he can get into trouble when a receiver puts a double move on him because of his aggressive nature, but the 26-year-old has won plenty of battles on the perimeter, allowing a completion rate of 55.4 percent or less in coverage in three out of four campaigns.
In 2021, Dean didn’t allow a touchdown while on the field for 685 snaps through 15 games. He hasn’t permitted a passer rating higher than 86 in any of his four seasons.
Jessie Bates III, safety
As an alternative premier safety option to Gardner-Johnson, Jessie Bates III will garner just as much interest on the open market. The Cincinnati Bengals’ standout safety knows how to find the football, recording at least three interceptions in a season for four out of his five pro campaigns.
After some on-field coverage struggles that stemmed from his dissatisfaction with contract talks last year, Bates bounced back, allowing a 51.4 percent completion rate and a 76.1 passer rating in coverage for the 2022 season.
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Keep in mind that 32-year-old Duron Harmon is set to become a free agent, and Tre’von Moehrig regressed in his second season (first under Graham). So, the Raiders should be aggressive in finding a building block at the safety position.
Assuming Gardner-Johnson and Bates have several suitors, the Raiders may also consider John Johnson III, whom the Cleveland Browns released two weeks ago. He’s interchangeable at both safety spots with decent slot experience.
Most realistic options
Jimmy Garoppolo, quarterback
Jimmy Garoppolo isn’t an appealing quarterback option at $30-plus million per year because of his injury history (missed 18 games since 2020), but he has New England Patriots ties with three years around Josh McDaniels’ offensive system.
If the Raiders sign him, expect an incentive-laden deal with escalators because of Garoppolo’s pattern of recent injuries (broken foot in 2022, surgery on his throwing shoulder last offseason).
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In the event that quarterback-needy teams engage in a bidding competition for Garoppolo, Ziegler should excuse the Raiders from a push for an injury-prone quarterback and go with a cheaper option who can post similar passing numbers.
Isaiah Wynn, offensive line
With McDaniels as their offensive coordinator, the Patriots selected Isaiah Wynn in the first round of the 2018 draft. He’s also an appealing target for the Raiders because of his position versatility.
As a collegian, Wynn played left guard and left tackle. In his first three years with the Patriots, he lined up at left tackle before a move to the right side this past season.
On the downside, Wynn has missed about a third of his career games (23 out of 66 contests). If he can stay healthy, the 6-2, 310-pounder can compete for the right tackle job or perhaps slide inside to left guard if Dylan Parham shifts to the center spot.
Yodny Cajuste, a 2019 third-rounder with the Patriots, may also be an option to fill depth at the tackle position.
Dalton Risner, offensive guard
Back in 2019, Dalton Risner said he modeled his game after former Patriots left tackle Nate Solder:
Now available on the open market, Risner may draw some attention from McDaniels, who worked with Solder between the 2012 and 2017 seasons. The four-year left guard put together a solid run with the Denver Broncos, but he may be the odd man out with a new coaching staff in Mile High City.
While Risner has quality technical skill that may remind McDaniels of Solder, he can bring a mean streak to the interior of the offensive line that the Raiders have missed since Richie Incognito’s time at left guard.
Dalvin Tomlinson, defensive tackle
Among all the free-agent options, Dalvin Tomlinson seems like one of the more likely signings because he’s played under defensive coordinator Patrick Graham (2020) and new defensive line coach Rob Leonard (2017).
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Before the 2022 trade deadline, the Raiders sent their proven veteran run-stopper in Johnathan Hankins to the Dallas Cowboys. Tomlinson can start immediately while rookie fourth-rounder Neil Farrell Jr. continues to grow in that role.
With Graham as his coordinator, Tomlinson had his best season, recording 49 tackles, eight for loss, 3.5 sacks and four pass breakups in 2020.
James Bradberry, cornerback
The Raiders should’ve signed James Bradberry for a bargain-bin price after the New York Giants cut him last offseason. Despite a costly holding penalty in Super Bowl 57, he’s coming off a top-notch campaign as a second-team All-Pro who recorded 17 pass breakups and three interceptions while allowing a 45.3 percent completion rate and a 51.6 passer rating in coverage.
Bradberry will cost more than the $7.3 million that the Philadelphia Eagles paid him in 2022—perhaps double that price—but he’s worth it. Bradberry put together his only Pro Bowl campaign under Graham in 2020 when he registered a career-high 18 pass breakups.
Vegas may have to battle the Arizona Cardinals in the desert for Bradberry because his previous defensive coordinator, Jonathan Gannon, is the head coach of the NFC West club.
Bargain-bin options for Las Vegas Raiders
Baker Mayfield, quarterback
Head coach Josh McDaniels has past connections to Baker Mayfield.
In 2018, Mayfield’s agent, Jack Mills, appeared on Andrew Brandt’s podcast and told him about the New England Patriots’ interest in the quarterback.
Apparently, the Patriots had an eye on Mayfield if he didn’t go to the Cleveland Browns at No. 1, which matches what ProFootballTalk’s Mike Florio said about the buzz between the Patriots and Mayfield in 2018.
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“Just before the 2018 draft, McDaniels held a hush-hush workout with Baker Mayfield. The Patriots liked him; they just weren’t in position to get him.”
While on the NFL Network’s Rich Eisen Show this week, Florio mentioned Mayfield as an under-the-radar quarterback option for the Raiders:
Say what you want about Mayfield, but if the Raiders can sign him for half the cost of Jimmy Garoppolo’s projected $30-35 million salary, he’s a better option.
With the No. 3 rushing offense, Mayfield helped lead the Browns to the 2020 postseason and played well in a road win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Wild Card Round, throwing for 263 yards and three touchdowns.
This past season, Mayfield had some decent outings under Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay despite playing without All-Pro wideout Cooper Kupp. By the way, he beat the Raiders in dramatic fashion in his first game with the Rams—almost 48 hours after the team claimed him off waivers.
In the right situation, Mayfield is a serviceable starting quarterback. McDaniels showed interest in him five years ago and saw the quarterback pull out a victory against his team in Week 14 this past season. Because of those factors, Mayfield has a chance to become a stopgap option in Las Vegas.
Cameron Fleming, offensive tackle
Cameron Fleming has ties to the Patriots, who drafted him in the fourth round of the 2014 draft. He played through four seasons in New England.
In 2022, Fleming had a full-time starting role for the second term in his nine-year career. Ironically, he had his worst game against the Raiders in Week 11, allowing two sacks, but he only gave up two sacks for the remainder of the season, per Pro Football Focus.
McDaniels may want to reunite with Fleming and give him an opportunity to push Brandon Parker, whom the Raiders re-signed on Friday, for the primary swing tackle role.
David Long Jr, linebacker
David Long Jr. is one of the most underrated free agents in this year’s class. He came into the NFL as a sixth-rounder out of West Virginia and worked his way up the Tennessee Titans’ depth chart, rising from a special teamer to a starter who can play multiple off-ball linebacker positions.
This past season, Long led the Titans’ linebackers in defensive snaps (740), but he missed the last five games with a hamstring injury. Before going down, he made a strong impression in the middle of the Titans defense, registering 86 tackles, seven for loss, five pass breakups and two interceptions.
Last offseason, Vegas signed former Titans linebacker Jayon Brown, but he couldn’t escape the injury bug. Perhaps Long has better luck with staying healthy.
On his staff, McDaniels has pass-rush specialist and defensive assistant Matt Edwards, who served as a special teams coach and defensive assistant in Tennessee, which may explain the connection between Titans defenders and the Raiders.
Elandon Roberts, linebacker
Elandon Roberts isn’t on this free-agent list because of his Patriots ties. Between 2020 and 2021 with the Miami Dolphins, he played under Raiders’ new defensive line coach Rob Leonard.
Last year, Leonard moved on to coach the Baltimore Ravens outside linebackers, and Roberts had his most productive season, registering a team-leading 107 tackles, 10 for loss and 4.5 sacks (all career highs).
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Roberts is a two-down defender because of his lack of coverage skills, but Graham can dial up some exotic blitzes with him and use the downhill linebacker to supplement the run defense.
Adrian Amos, safety
The Chicago Bears selected Adrian Amos in the fifth round of the 2015 draft when Raiders assistant general manager Champ Kelly served as their director of pro scouting.
Amos had a productive four-year run with the Bears and then signed with the Green Bay Packers where he played significant snaps in both safety roles (in the box and center field). At this stage in his career, he’s lost some luster in his deep coverage ability but still brings reliable tackling in the open field and on run plays.
In 2022, Amos logged the second-most tackles (102) among Packers defenders and registered a career-high seven tackles for loss, only missing 3.8 percent of his attempts. As he did with the Packers, the battle-tested safety can bring leadership (with productive play) to a remodeled defensive unit.
Maurice Moton covers the Raiders for Sportsnaut. You can follow him on Twitter at @MoeMoton.