Raiders lose veteran defensive tackle to AFC contender

While it was expected after the Las Vegas Raiders invested heavily in the defensive line in the draft, one veteran is moving on to a new opportunity.

According to a team announcement, the Baltimore Ravens have signed former Raiders defensive tackle John Jenkins on a one-year contract.

A journeyman defensive tackle, Jenkins will be spending his 13th NFL season with his seventh different team after spending the last two seasons in Las Vegas. In that time, Jenkins started 34 games with the Raiders, recording 107 tackles, two sacks and six pass breakups.

Jenkins is who the Ravens landed on to replace veteran defensive tackle Michael Pierce, who retired this offseason. He is also expected to serve as a veteran mentor to Travis Jones in Baltimore.

While it is disappointing to see the Raiders lose Jenkins, he would be hard-pressed to find a role on what is shaping up to be a deep defensive line for the Raiders.

Assuming Christian Wilkins is healthy, he should start immediately beside the re-signed Adam Butler. The Raiders also signed Leki Fotu for Jenkins’s role as veteran run-stuffer, and the team spent a pair of Day Three picks on Tonka Hemingway and JJ Pegues. They also invested in a long-term project in Australian defensive lineman Laki Tasi, who joins the Raiders by way of the NFL’s International Pathway Program.

Jenkins’s departure is an unfortunate development, but the Raiders have made their preparations early to mitigate the damage done.