NFL Free Agency: Raiders Retain Safety Matt Giordano

New Oakland Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie has been cash-strapped in his first offseason, but he continues to make shrewd, under-the-radar moves that ought to pay dividends to his franchise in 2012.  

The latest transaction was re-signing safety Matt Giordano, a player that McKenzie grew familiar with in 2009 when each was a part of the Green Bay Packers organization.  Further, Giordano played for new Raiders head coach Dennis Allen when he was the secondary coach for New Orleans in 2010.

Giordano is coming off of his best season as a pro in 2011, during which he set a career-high with five interceptions (tops on the Raiders) and nearly doubled his career tackling output with 70 stops.

Originally a fourth-round pick of the Indianapolis Colts out of California in 2005, Giordano has played in 84 career regular-season games, making 155 tackles, picking off eight passes and notching a single sack.

In Oakland, he'll likely reassume a role as a primary reserve safety playing behind Tyvon Branch and Michael Huff. The Raiders were forced to part ways with cornerback Stanford Routt earlier this offseason, so keeping Giordano is an important part of rebuilding a secondary that relinquished over 4,000 yards a season ago.  

The Raiders do not pick until the compensatory portion of the third round in the upcoming draft, so the options remain limited for the team to acquire new talent.  With Giordano back in tow, the Raiders will likely turn their focus to other low-cost veterans that remain without a team after the initial waves of free agency.