Who has benefited the most from free agency so far?
While free agency is still ongoing, the first week is typically when all or at least most of the splash signings happen. That being said, the Las Vegas Raiders weren’t exactly big spenders and saw more key players leave than get brought in during the initial wave of free agency.
Regardless, the Raiders’ roster has been shaken up, leaving a handful of winners and losers among the players who were already under contract.
WINNER: Young Linebackers
With Robert Spillane heading to the New England Patriots and Divine Deablo signing with the Atlanta Falcons, the Raiders will be looking for new starting linebackers this season. Granted, Elandon Roberts was brought in to fill one of those spots, but the defense will have at least one first-string role up for grabs during training camp.
That means Amari Burney, Tommy Eichenberg or Amari Gainer are in line to see a dramatic increase in playing time compared to last season.
Of those three, Burney would likely be the favorite seeing as he received a decent amount of snaps off the bench in the second half of 2024. Meanwhile, Eichenberg is the only one of that bunch to make a start last fall, and Gainer was a standout during the preseason last August.
In other words, all the young linebackers on the roster now have an opportunity to improve their status on the roster with Spillane and Deablo out of the picture.
LOSER: Dylan Parham
Parham is heading into a contract year and may not be a starter in September.
Las Vegas re-signed Jordan Meredith, who was an exclusive rights free agent and outperformed Parham in 2024, and inked Alex Cappa to a two-year, $11 million contract. While Cappa was bad last season, the front office didn’t give him $5.5 million guaranteed with plans of having him ride the bench.
At the least, Parham is going to have to compete for a starting job with the Raiders if he isn’t traded or let go before training camp. That isn’t ideal heading into a prove-it campaign.
WINNER: Thomas Harper
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With Tre’von Moehrig and Nate Hobbs leaving in free agency, the Silver and Black’s secondary has question marks at free safety and nickel corner. Jeremy Chinn is best when playing in the box and Isaiah Pola-Mao isn’t a proven commodity or a guaranteed starter at this point in his career.
That’s good news for Harper, who got some action at free safety down the stretch of last season and was primarily a slot corner in college. Whether it’s replacing Hobbs or becoming the defense’s primary deep defender, the second-year pro has an opportunity to earn a much bigger role next season.
LOSER: No. 1 Corner
Heading into free agency, the Raiders were rumored to be in the market for a cornerback. The team was loosely linked to D.J. Reed and Byron Murphy Jr., but Reed signed a three-year, $48 million contract with the Detroit Lions while Murphy is returning to Minnesota on a three-year, $54 million deal.
In a way, this could be spun where Jakorian Bennett and Jack Jones are considered ‘winners’ since they don’t have any additional competition for their starting spots. But right now, the defense lacks a true No. 1 corner on the roster and is relying on Bennett and/or Jones to take a big step forward in the fall.
WINNER: Tre Tucker
Vegas is considered to be in the wide receiver market this offseason, especially with John Spytek’s connection to Chris Godwin and Pete Carroll’s ties to DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett. However, Godwin is staying in Tampa Bay, Metcalf was traded to Pittsburgh and Lockett remains unsigned despite being on the open market for two weeks.
That’s good news for Tucker as he remains the offense’s No. 2 wideout (not including Brock Bowers). Additionally, this will be the former third-round pick’s pivotal third-season and he finally has a quarterback who can consistently take advantage of his speed.
Tucker has been underutilized as a deep threat so far, and Geno Smith’s arm strength should help solve that problem. Instead of looking at Lockett as competition, the Cincinnati product can use the veteran receiver as a model for how productive he can be with Smith slinging the rock.
LOSER: Tyree Wilson
From the same draft class, Wilson is also entering a make-or-break type of season as a third-year pro. The problem is he doesn’t have a clear path to the starting lineup with Adam Butler and Malcolm Koonce re-signing. That’s going to make it difficult for the former first-round pick to live up to his draft status as he’s currently destined for a rotational role, again.
WINNER: Sincere McCormick
While Raheem Mostert brings a veteran presence to the Raiders’ backfield, Mostert turns 33 years old next month and is coming off a campaign where he was injured and got his spot taken by a younger back. That means the Raiders’ starting running back job is still wide open, benefitting McCormick.
Granted, the front office still will likely draft someone at the position next month. But right now, McCormick has a good chance at being the offense’s lead back in the fall. Not a bad spot to be in for a guy who has spent the majority of his career on the practice squad and didn’t get his first NFL carry until Week 12 of last season.