An Offseason Addition the Raiders Should Consider

The Las Vegas Raiders have made several solid moves in the team's first offseason under John Spytek and Pete Carroll. However, with the Raiders' defense still has many questions surrounding it entering the training camp. The unit is strong in some areas, but weak in others.

Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports believes that although the Raiders need much more help at the cornerback position, a previous connection between one of Las Vegas' position coaches and safety Justin Simmons, makes the veteran safety an intriguing player worth considering.

Linked to big-name cover men like Jaire Alexander and Jalen Ramsey thanks to their dearth of proven options at cornerback, the Raiders could just as easily use a savvy starter on the back end under the defensively minded Pete Carroll," Benjamin said.

"Besides possessing plenty of 2025 salary cap space to add help, the Raiders also employ pass game coordinator Joe Woods, who served as Simmons' first defensive backs coach in Denver."

While the connection between Simmons and Woods is enough for the Raiders to consider the well-respected safety, Las Vegas' front office has not made many splashes in free agency this offseason. Instead, they have made affordable and calculated risks in free agency.

The Raiders also appear confident in their group of safeties, as Jeremy Chinn and Isaiah Pola-Mao lead the way on the backend of Las Vegas' defense. The Raiders also signed Lonnie Johnson this offseason, adding even more potential to the unit.

"It starts off, I would say, with Jeremy [Chinn] – the leadership, I don't know if you guys got a chance to talk to him, but just in terms of his leadership, he's very sure of himself, because he puts in the work. Self-confidence comes from preparation; it's not a self-esteem thing or self-talk thing. When you're prepared, you're really, really confident," Graham said.

"That's what I see from him. And he's been a sponge in terms of learning how we want to do things, and then all the physical attributes, but all 32 teams know about that. The speed, the size, physicality, ability to tackle, nose for the ball. So, I mean, it's all been positive there.

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