Yardbarker
x
Raiders' new linebacker Quay Walker seemed to slight his former team when praising the fit he and Nakobe Dean have in Vegas
Wm. Glasheen/USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

Raiders' new linebacker Quay Walker seemed to slight his former team when praising the fit he and Nakobe Dean have in Vegas

Originally posted on A to Z Sports  |  By Justin Churchill  |  Last updated Mar 13, 2026 9:27 PM ET

Monday was a big day for the Las Vegas Raiders. On their first day as spenders in free agency, they went out and spent a ton of money. However, no position group was affected as much as the linebacker group, which signed Quay Walker and Nakobe Dean.

Raiders’ new LB Quay Walker disses his former team

The two linebackers played together for the Georgia Bulldogs, where they won a National Championship. So, they’re close, but their NFL careers weren’t quite as successful individually as their college careers were. That doesn’t mean they’re bad; both have the potential to be elite at their positions. It just means that in college, they were superstars; in the NFL, they weren’t retained by the teams that drafted them after their rookie contract expired, even though they had been drafted fairly high by their previous teams.

Walker talked about finally being used the right way in Las Vegas, as opposed to how he was used with the Green Bay Packers. It seemed like a slight, and beat writers on the Packers beat I’ve spoken to have let me know it's a dig.

“I know Rob [Leonard] is going to use us in the right way and set us up for success,” Walker said on Thursday to reporters. “It's going to fit perfectly. Had a talk with him last night at dinner. I'm not going to go into everything, but I know he's going to use me the right way, lining me up in different positions and just moving me all around so other teams can't really recognize what I'm going to do.

“I just think he's really going to bring out my skill set, because I think he quite understands me, although he hasn't really seen me on the field yet, but I know he's watched me and did a lot of things like that, so I think I'm going to be used the right way. I think he's going to do it the right way."

Some in the Packers' fan base feel the same way about how Walker was used, while others feel differently. They had two different coordinators during the time he was there, who both used him differently, whether on or off the ball. The Raiders are transitioning to a 3-4 defense, meaning three down linemen and potentially two outside linebackers who may drop back into coverage or rush the passer, with two inside linebackers in the middle.

Walker and Dean will be those two guys. Now, who will play on the ball and who will play off the ball is a different story. Who will be the blitzer and who will drop back into coverage is a different story. This is different than what the Raiders have run since Josh McDaniels took over years ago, when he brought Patrick Graham along as the DC.

Walker finished 2025 with 27 catches allowed on 36 targets, for 244 yards and one touchdown while in coverage, per Sports Info Solutions. Dean allowed five catches on 11 targets for 39 yards, but was not asked to drop back into coverage nearly as much. Dean played 205 coverage snaps while Walker played 435.

Both Dean and Walker are good at blitzing and playing the run, while Dean is much better at playing on the ball because of his ability to have better pursuit angles. However, their responsibilities could change from game to game, let alone from play to play. All they know is that they are happy to be playing together again.

"I'm really excited to do that because I played with him before, as we all know,” Walker said of playing with Dean. “So, it's just another opportunity for us to go out there and showcase our talent, bring a type of energy and intensity to the defense, and just add to it. Just bring a whole lot of grit that the other guys can feed up on, and hopefully they can match our energy, which I know they would.”

The Raiders wanted the two of them for a reason, and they got their guys.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads:

Customize Your Newsletter

Yardbarker +

Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!