Up until the start of the NFL free agency period, it was like pulling teeth to get anything new out of Oakland other than more Lane Kiffin firing rumors.  Since that day, the Raiders have been working at a feverish pace to rework the roster that only brought them four wins last year. 

 

Now that the Raiders have expanded the payroll to near cap level, I expect that there will be a lull in the action until draft day.  This might be a good time to go through the roster and analyze the depth chart and the revised needs.

 

QB

Depth:

1. JaMarcus Russell
2. Andrew Walter
3. N/A

Need: FREE AGENCY - You can go into the season with two QBs, but one of them better be experienced.  This means the Raiders will need to sign a backup in order to provide solid depth if Russell goes down. 

 

RB

Depth:

1. Justin Fargas
2. Dominic Rhodes
3. Michael Bush
4. Adimchinobe Echemandu
5. Lamont Jordan

Need: NONE – What they need to do is cut or trade Jordan—and even then, they’ll have one too many RBs. 

FB

Depth:

1. Justin Griffith
2. Oren Oneal

Need: NONE – May be a strength on the team. 

TE

Depth:

1. Zach Miller
2. John Madsen
3. Tony Stewart
4. Fred Wakefield

 Need: NONE – Another possible strength for the team.  Only three of these guys are going to make the team and I’m pretty sure that Miller and Madsen will be two of them.

 

WR

Depth:

1. Javon Walker
2. Ronald Curry
3. Drew Carter
4. Johnie Lee Higgins
5. Chris McFoy
6. Jonathan Holland
7. Will Buchanon
8. Drisan James

Need: DRAFT – Tim Dwight is still listed on the team, but it’s unlikely he’ll be resigned.  Higgins and McFoy haven’t proved themselves to be NFL-caliber receivers and the top three on the depth chart have all been brittle during their careers.  The Raiders have to draft a receiver. 

 

OT

Depth:

1. Cornell Green
2. Paul McQuistan
3. Kwame Harris
4. Mario Henderson
5. Mark Wilson
6. Seth Wand
7. Jonathan Palmer

Need: DRAFT – At this time, I can’t think of any Left Tackles on the market worth signing and none of these guys have been starting Left Tackles in the league.  This position could be a problem, but I don’t know much about being an offensive line coach so I’ll defer to whatever Tom Cable says we should do. 

 

OG

Depth:

1. Robert Gallery
2. Cooper Carlisle
3. Paul McQuistan
4. Jake Grove
5. Chris Morris
6. Jesse Boone

Need: DRAFT or FREE AGENCY – This is a position that we have both starters ready to play on the line for a second year straight and we can fill the depth either late in the draft or during free agency.  Not really a need, but we should probably make sure that we haven’t overlooked anyone—especially since the depth could be starting at other positions. 

 

C 
Depth:

1. Jake Grove
2. Chris Morris
3. Jesse Boone

Need: FREE AGENCY – I’d like to see us re-sign Newberry, but if we don’t we should be fine going into the season. 

 

CB

Depth:

1. Nnamdi Asomugha
2. DeAngelo Hall
3. Stanford Routt
4. Fabian Washington
5. Chris Johnson
6. John Bowie

Need: TRADE – Now that Hall and Asomugha are under contract, the Raiders need to trade either Washington or Routt.  Carr is probably going to sign on elsewhere and the Raiders are unlikely to match any deal. 

 

S

Depth:

1. Michael Huff
2. Gibril Wilson
3. Hiram Eugene
4. Stuart Schwiegert
5. Jarrod Cooper
6. Rashad Baker

Need: NONE – With Wilson and Huff starting and the depth full of talent, this is a strength this season.  Cooper still needs to re-sign, but after the special teams play dropped off after his injury last season, it’s a sure bet he’ll be with the team. 

 

LB

Depth:

1. Kirk Morrison
2. Thomas Howard
3. Robert Thomas
4. Sam Williams
5. Isaiah Ekejiuba
6. Ricky Brown
7. John Alston

Need: DRAFT or FREE AGENCY – Either way, the Raiders need to pick up a strong side linebacker.  Thomas is nothing more than a backup, along with the rest of the linebackers not named Howard or Morrison. 

 

DE

Depth:

1. Derrick Burgess
2. Jay Richardson
3. Tommy Kelly
4. Sam Williams

Need: DRAFT or FREE AGENCY – Long and Gholston have been popular choices at the No. 4 pick, but I’m starting to think that the Raiders aren’t going to be picking there.  If that’s the case, then they will be drafting this position later in the draft.  Al Davis is a master at finding talent at this position so it’s a good bet that he already has a plan here. 

 

DT

Depth:

1. Tommy Kelly
2. Gerrard Warren
3. Terrell Sands
4. William Joseph
5. Josh Shaw

Need: FREE AGENCY – Expect this to be a position where an undrafted free agent or lesser known veteran is picked up.  Like with DEs, Davis has been pretty good with diamonds in the rough here too. 

 

Special Teams

• K – Sebastian Janikowski
• P – Shane Lechler
• LS – John Condo

Need: NONE – The Raiders are set here, especially since Kiffin isn’t afraid to go for the 50+ yard field goal once a game. 

 

Analysis:

Although many in Raider Nation are clamoring for McFadden here, I think that the Raiders will have a tough choice to make between sitting at the fourth spot and picking Jake Long or McFadden, or trading back for more picks.  I know that Davis is more likely to trade up, but I really can’t see how he’ll pull that off this year. 

The more I think about it, the more I can see Jerry Jones and Al Davis making a blockbuster trade that enables the Cowboys to draft McFadden.  According to the chart, the Cowboys would be giving up both of their first round picks, a third rounder and a fifth rounder.  Since the Cowboys need very little to make a championship run, this could be a likely scenario.  Whatever the Raiders do, it’ll definitely be interesting.