Raiders Rumors: Latest Buzz on Robby Anderson, Darius Slay Pursuit

The Las Vegas Raiders have made plenty of improvements ahead of the first season in their new home.

While they have hit on plenty of their targets, the Raiders have not had a 100 percent success rate on the free-agent and trade markets. The AFC West side has not bolstered its wide receiver depth, and it struck out on a majority of the top available defensive backs before settling on Eli Apple.

Las Vegas should be a better side in 2020 because of its additions, but there could still be questions regarding whether it can pose a significant challenge to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Latest Raiders Buzz

Robby Anderson

According to The Athletic's Vic Tafur, the Raiders "liked" Robby Anderson, "but decided to focus on defense in free agency."

Anderson produced at least 700 receiving yards in each of the past three seasons for the New York Jets, and while he could have been an intriguing complement to Tyrell Williams, the cost may have been too high. The 26-year-old made $3,095,000 in 2019, and he would likely be in search of a raise for the 2020 campaign.

The Raiders are already paying Williams $11 million, and tight end Darren Waller is expected to earn $7,280,000 in base salary.

Because they had to fill so many defensive holes, the Raiders likely would not have been able to pay Anderson the money he wanted while using a bulk of the budget at linebacker and other spots.

Another factor playing into Las Vegas' decision was likely the 2020 NFL draft class, which is expected to have a handful of first-round wide receivers. The Raiders have two first-round selections, and depending on how the draft plays out, they could be in line to take Oklahoma's CeeDee Lamb or Alabama's Jerry Jeudy at No. 12.

With most defensive needs taken care of, the Raiders should not be as hard-pressed to find an answer there at either No. 12 or No. 19, which opens the door to add to the wide receiver collection behind Williams.

Darius Slay Pursuit

According to Tafur, the Raiders were in trade discussions with the Detroit Lions on Wednesday over defensive back Darius Slay.

However, the Lions chose the Philadelphia Eagles as a trade partner because they were willing to spend on a three-year, $50 million contract extension for Slay. Tafur noted, "the Raiders weren’t going to go that high, as they thought Jones was clearly better."

The failed pursuit of Slay falls in line with the other chases of top defensive backs, including Byron Jones and Chris Harris Jr. Jones opted to sign with the Miami Dolphins, while Harris remained in the AFC West with the Los Angeles Chargers.

Las Vegas did add Apple and safety Jeff Heath to its secondary, but neither was as coveted as Jones, Harris or Slay.

The Raiders can still improve their secondary in the NFL draft, just like they did in 2019 with the first-round selection of Johnathan Abram and second-round choice of Trayvon Mullen.

A combination of Abram, Apple, Heath, Mullen and a potential early draft pick might be able to challenge some of the best wide receivers in the division, like Kansas City's Tyreek Hill and the Denver Broncos' Courtland Sutton.

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90. Statistics obtained from Pro Football Reference. Contract information obtained from Spotrac.