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Raiders Cut Ties With Rookie to Add Ex-Packers LB

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Austin C. Boyd | Last updated May 21, 2025 1:45 PM ET

The Las Vegas Raiders just kicked off OTA Offseason Workouts, which is the first time veterans and the team's rookie class will be able to practice together. It's also the best look head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Spytek are going to get at the roster so far.

That's going to lead to some more roster tinkering in the coming weeks. The Raiders have already started to make more moves.

Las Vegas announced Wednesday that they've signed linebacker Michael Barrett and released rookie linebacker Wesley Steiner. The latter was a recent undrafted signing by the Raiders out of Washington State.

He didn't get much of a chance to show the team what he could do, but they clearly wanted to go in a different direction. Barrett was a seventh-round pick of the Carolina Panthers last year, but was traded to the Seattle Seahawks before the start of the season.

Despite the trade, he was released and briefly on the Seahawks' practice squad. He also spent time with the Green Bay Packers and the Cleveland Browns last season, but was not able to get on the field for any snaps during the regular season.

Notably, Barrett spent six years at Michigan under Jim Harbaugh. He became a key player for the Wolverines and was named Third-Team All-Big Ten twice. He's got an uphill battle making the active roster, but linebacker is one of the thinner positions for the Raiders.

He'll get a fair chance to earn a spot on the team.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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