Trevor Scott The Sackmaster

Ever since the guy was drafted in the sixth round in 2008, Trevor Scott has been making his mark with the Oakland Raiders.

He is both a fan favorite and valued by whatever coaching staff happens to be in place.

Scott used to play tight end in college at the University of Buffalo but switched to defensive end as a junior, where his game flourished.

As a pro, he’s been a menace to QBs as a situational pass rusher coming off the edge as a defensive end. His run support has been an asset as well.

With the addition of Richard Seymour and Greg Ellis as defensive ends in 2009, Scott was transitioned to linebacker towards midseason, where he supplanted Thomas Howard on the weak side.

Scott can always be shuffled back to DE if need be, though he struggles against the better offensive tackles. Even at 6'5", over 250 lbs., Scott does not have the physical power to overcome the beefier tackles barring a path to a QB.

Scott excels where has space to maneuver and zero in on QBs, ball carriers, and receivers. He is very quick and tenacious, assets which make him very effective as a linebacker. Though he has been critiqued as prone to over-pursue on occasion, his instincts getting to the ball are pretty solid.

Howard is of much better service on the strong side where his speed is so effective. The strong side has been terrible without Ricky Brown and Jon Alston available. Third stringer Sam Williams has been horrible as a replacement (as he always is whenever he plays linebacker—hopefully this will be the last season Williams is on the roster).

Even without being a starter until recently, Scott leads the team in sacks with six heading into week 15. His goal before the season was to reach double-digit sacks. With three games left, he just might do it.

The Raiders need more defenders like Trevor Scott with good closing speed, the ability to make sure tackles, and the flexibility to switch positions as needs arise.