2010 Oakland Raiders Free Agency Report

With the Franchise period over, It becomes more evident that the Oakland Raiders must have a very successful draft in April. The Raiders have franchised Richard Seymour which honestly seems like the best option because Seymour will want a huge payday, and he only had a mediocre season in 2009, so the Raiders will have anohter year to decide whether hes worth the money he wants.

With it being more obvious that there will be no salary cap in 2010, there are some positives and negatives with that happening. The positives will be that Kirk Morisson and Thomas Howard will not be Unrestricted free agents and the Raiders will still own their rights. With a solid MLB pickup such as McClain, Spikes, or Micah Johnson and moving Morisson to the outside I truly believe that we will have a solid Linebacking core. The Negatives with the Free Agency are the fact that most young free agents will be Restricted so the only way to gain some of the positions of need will be to make trades, and according to the media, Al Davis is willing to trade almost the whole roster.

With Morisson and Howard likely being around for the 2010 season the seasons most pressing needs are in the trenches. OT, NT are the positions that need to be addressed immediately. OT should be address with the Raiders first round pick, unless Dan Williams moves up the draft boards, but I feel OT needs to be the pick. NT needs to be addressed in the 2nd round with Terrence Cody or Cam Thomas. Spikes is also an option with the 2nd rd pick if Cody isnt available. Morisson may not be the best MLB in the NFL but hes definitely a decent player, so MLB should not be as important as OT and NT. A future quarterback also needs to be addressed in the draft such as Snead, Brown, or LeFevour. There will be quality guards in free agency to replace Cooper Carlisle. and Stanford routt needs to be released and upgraded in the 3rd or 4th round in the draft.

There should only be a few trades worth talking about, such as a 2nd round and Fargas for Shaun Rodgers from the Browns. Maybe the extra 3rd and 5th round for Mike Vick. id give up the 1st round pick for Wilfork Though.

Free Agents to possibly sign should definitely be Karlos Dansby, he would provide so much help for the Raiders and would solidify the LB core. Gary Brackett or Larry foote could also be viable options here but not the best. At the DT position there is no dominant players available now. But Tank Johnson and Kandrick Clancy could be options if not addressed in the draft. Bobbie Williams, Rob Sims, Evan Mathis, and Stephen Neal are all quality starters that would fill the OG hole immediately. At CB, Daunte Robinson would make the Raiders have the Best CB duo in the NFL, but he will cost a lot of money, so its unlikely. Leigh Bodden, is probably the best Press corner available, but may also cost a lot. He may be a better option than Robinson if the Raiders chose to pick a CB in free agency. He's from New England so maybe Seymour could convince him to sign.

The Raiders are going to have to make alot of moves and have a very successful draft to be playoff contenders in 2010. But as a true Raider fan, I have faith that Al will make some smart moves in order to improve our team. Free agent signings start on March 5th so we'll see what happens. GO RAIDERS!!!