Getty Defensive back Keisean Nixon #22 of the Las Vegas Raiders and teammates take the field for a game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Allegiant Stadium on January 9, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Raiders defeated the Chargers 35-32 in overtime.
The Green Bay Packers are adding another special teams contributor with ties to new coordinator Rick Bisaccia to their roster for the 2022 season.
According to Doug Kyed of Pro Football Focus, the Packers are signing former Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Keisean Nixon to a free-agent contract. The 24-year-old played in 40 games for the Raiders over the past three seasons with the majority of his contributors coming on special teams as both a returner and punt/kick coverage piece.
Nixon is also the nephew of Grammy-nominated rapper Snoop Dogg, who performed at the halftime show of Super Bowl LVI back in February.
The #Packers are signing ex-Raiders CB Keisean Nixon, per source.
The Packers could have a couple of different roles in mind for Nixon, depending on how he proves himself over the next several months of the offseason. He played a career-high 51 snaps in the slot last season for the Raiders and could be viewed as a potential replacement for Chandon Sullivan — who had manned the role for the past two seasons but signed with the Minnesota Vikings on March 25. He also returned three kicks for the Raiders in both 2019 and 2020, averaging 14 yards per return.
By no means is Nixon a polished addition, though. According to Pro Football Focus, he missed more tackles (four) than he made (three) on punt and kickoff coverage in 2021. He was also completely pushed aside on kickoff return duties in favor of other options such as Jalen Richard, Kenyan Drake and Tyron Johnson.
Even still, the Packers signing Nixon feels like a move designed to help Bisaccia rebuild their special teams. He watched him develop from a roster-fringe undrafted rookie in 2019 to a regular special teams contributor while presiding over the Raiders’ unit, so there might not be anyone better acquainted with Nixon’s untapped potential.
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