Aug 23, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Detailed view of a Las Vegas Raiders helmet during a preseason NFL game at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The Raiders' Secret Superstar of the 2025 Season

Originally posted on Las Vegas Raiders on SI
By Ezekiel Trezevant | Last updated Jan 22, 2026 8:00 AM ET

The Las Vegas Raiders' season was largely a forgettable one. Almost none of the moves the Raiders' front office made last offseason panned out this season. Las Vegas stumbled across the finish line this season, losing most of the games they played this season, in mostly uncompetitive fashion.

Raiders' Secret Superstar

Zach Tantillo of Pro Football Focus recently named one unsung hero, or secret superstar, as Tantillo called it, for every team in the National Football League. Unsurprisingly, Tantillo picked cornerback Eric Stokes as the Raiders' secret superstar. The veteran cornerback undoubtedly earned his praise.

"Stokes emerged as one of the Raiders’ few consistent bright spots in 2025 after signing a one-year, $3.5 million contract in March. The former first-rounder posted a 73.6 PFF overall grade, the second-highest mark on the defense — behind only Maxx Crosby — and a career high. Stokes’ 73.5 PFF coverage grade was also a team-leading figure," Tantillo said.

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Stokes was one of the few moves that worked out from last offseason. He is the top player at a position the Raiders are painfully thin at. Still, he is set to hit free agency, as he only signed a one-year deal with Las Vegas. Stokes made the most of his opportunity, now he must decide where to play.

Following Pete Carroll's firing, Raiders General Manager John Spytek said he does not want talented players currently on the roster to leave in free agency, if the Raiders can help it. Las Vegas needs to keep as much talent as possible.

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“We don't want to let good players leave our building. That's happened around here. I was in charge last year when a couple good players left the building. And it's one of the things I learned, you got to keep our good players here. And we were talking about it this morning. You look around the league there's some former Raiders that are playing good football somewhere. And I got to do a better job in that world," Spytek said.

“We want to define what it means to be a Raider. We want people that are excited to be a Raider. We think that this is an exciting job, and we want people where it means a little bit more to be a Raider. And I think when we can find that, we can find those people that are dying to stay here, dying to come here, dying not to leave here, then that success with some stability will be created."

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This article first appeared on Las Vegas Raiders on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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