Getty Former Cincinnati Bengals LB Preston Brown.
The second half of the season is in full swing and teams know if they are in or out of the playoff hunt. The Oakland Raiders are a team that definitely has a shot at the playoffs. They’re tied for the last Wild Card spot in the AFC and only 0.5 games behind the Kansas City Chiefs for the AFC West lead.
Two teams that are currently out of the playoff race are the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Cincinnati Bengals and both teams just got rid of veteran defenders who the Raiders could be interested in. The Buccaneers just released former first-round pick Vernon Hargreaves, per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero and the Bengals released veteran linebacker Preston Brown, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Hargreaves and Brown are players that would fill-in needs for the Raiders, but should the team consider adding either of them?
Preston Brown Is a Tackling Machine
The Raiders have had linebacker trouble for almost a decade at this point and it hasn’t changed this season. The team tried bringing in another former Bengals linebacker in Vontaze Burfict to fix the issue, but he only lasted four games before he was suspended for the year. Preston Brown doesn’t have a pro bowl pedigree. However, he’s never accumulated less than 100 tackles in a season where he played every game. He’s also started in almost every game he’s played in.
Brown and current Raiders linebacker Tahir Whitehead have very similar careers, so that could be a reason the team won’t be interested. Also, Marquel Lee could be coming back from injury soon. Brown had a good stint with the Buffalo Bills, but with the Bengals, he’s been bad. According to Pro Football Focus, he’s been the worst defender on the Bengals and one of the worst linebackers in the NFL. He’s a player the Raiders should probably take a pass on. The linebacker situation still isn’t great in Oakland, but Brown isn’t the player who is going to fix that.
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Vernon Hargreaves Was a Mike Mayock Favorite
With LaMarcus Joyner possibly missing time with an injury, the Raiders have tried out a couple of defensive backs to fill-in for him. Now that Vernon Hargreaves has been released, he’s another player the team could look at. Hargreaves was the 11th overall pick back in 2016 and current Raiders general manager Mike Mayock had him ranked as the ninth-best overall prospect that year. The cornerback is still only 24-years old and a change of scenery could be what he needs to thrive.
However, he’ll have to clear waivers, which seems likely considering he has a big cap hit in 2020 if a team does claim him. It’s also concerning because Hargreaves seems to have been cut because of his lack of effort in a recent game. If there’s anything that Jon Gruden values, it’s players who love football and give maximum effort. Mayock may want to bring him in for a workout, but if Gruden gets a sense that Hargreaves doesn’t eat, sleep and breath football, he’s not going to sign him. That being said, he’s a low-risk, high-reward pickup for the team if he clears waivers and it’s a move that they should consider making.
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