How Spytek, Raiders Have Put on Roster-Building Clinic

Sensible moves may not be a big deal for several organizations around the league. Most of those organizations that have regularly made sensible coaching and roster moves go on to regularly win games. For most of recent memory, Las Vegas has not made sensible moves, nor won many games.

To truly understand where the Raiders are now and how significant the moves they made this offseason were, one must remember where they are coming from. It must be remembered how hopeful things were for the Raiders coming off a 10-win season and Wild Card berth in 2021.

It was precisely then that bad decisions began to build in Las Vegas. The Raiders hired Josh McDaniels ahead of the 2022 season. McDaniels was well-respected as an offensive coordinator. Some believed he was an offensive genius. He was essentially allowed to run the show.

However, that led to the addition of several questionable players that likely would not have been in Las Vegas if not for McDaniels. From 2022 to his firing in 2023, McDaniels effectively set the franchise back, with no shortage of questionable coaching staff and roster moves.

The roster decay that finally caught up with the Raiders in 2024 and 2025 began on McDaniels' watch. They are still working their way out of the hole the McDaniels era left them in. This is what makes this offseason so special for Las Vegas.

This offseason has set the Raiders up for a solid future. They are on pace to finally turn things around. It is fair to believe they hired the right general manager. It is fair to feel similarly about Klint Kubiak. Those were two significant positions the Raiders have had instability at for years. Not anymore.

Raiders' New Day

With their front office and coaching staff solidified, the Raiders turned their attention to the roster. Once free agency opened, the Raiders began making the kind of quality moves they have rarely made lately. The additions of Quay Walker, Nakobe Dean, and Tyler Linderbaum were strong moves.

The Raiders added players in free agency and even more in the draft. Las Vegas appears to finally be on the right track after an offseason filled with solid moves. Even star defensive end Maxx Crosby praised the Raiders' offseason moves after reportedly wanting to be traded earlier this offseason.

Their formidable additions in the draft and free agency now give them a good mix of veterans and younger players. Last season, the Raiders fielded the oldest head coach in league history, while the roster featured many older players, some well past their prime. Crosby likes the roster makeup.

“I think we have a really good group of older guys, and a mixture of young guys and vets, and anytime you can get the guys that have done it and have been in the fire to help the young guys, I think that's extremely valuable. So, not only myself, but all my teammates. We have guys like Nakobe Dean and Quay Walker that have played a lot of football," Crosby said after Organized Team Activities.

After the Raiders' failed trade that would have sent Crosby to the Baltimore Ravens, Crosby now returns to arguably the best supporting cast he has had since the Raiders drafted him.

“You got guys across the board; Taron Johnson being here, being able to teach a guy like Trey[dan] Stukes and pass down that knowledge is extremely important. And then you have Kirk [Cousins] with Fernando [Mendoza], and it goes on and on,” Crosby said.

“So, I think it's a really good mixture, and it's really important and valuable not just being on the field but also being in the film room and being able to pass that knowledge down." 

All in all, Crosby is ready for whatever it is that comes next. After several subpar and disappointing seasons in which the Raiders have made questionable decisions, Crosby believes things are beginning to look up.

“I'm fired up. Everyone knows my love and appreciation for this organization, that never changed from day one. It's part of the business, there's a lot of other things that don't need to be discussed, but ultimately, I'm exactly where I want to be. I'm excited. And just being here with this group, we have an extremely smart and great leader of men in Klint Kubiak, a coaching staff that is very detailed and very, I would say, attentive with everything they do."

Things are looking up in Las Vegas.