Getty Philadelphia Eagles OL Andre Dillard.
The Las Vegas Raiders have made some surprises this offseason but not all of them are positive. One of the biggest eyebrows raisers has been the lack of moves along the offensive line. The team hasn’t made any significant additions and appears mostly ready to run it back with much of last year’s group.
Through the course of the offseason, the Raiders will have a better idea regarding if that was a mistake or not. With a new coaching staff coming in, it’s difficult to have a full grasp of personnel before training camp. It’s still on the table that the team doesn’t like what they have on the offensive line and tries to make an upgrade.
Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine believes that if the Raiders trade this year’s third-round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for offensive lineman Andre Dillard, it would make a “splash”:
The Eagles are in an interesting situation with Andre Dillard. The team will have to decide if it wants to use his fifth-year option, which would cost around $11.2 million, just after the draft. With Jordan Mailata and Lane Johnson on the roster, Dillard will not start for them this season.
The Raiders could still use a starting tackle, and the odds of them finding a competent one in the third round aren’t great. After all, they learned with Leatherwood that even a first-rounder isn’t guaranteed success right away.
A simple solution for both sides is to send Dillard to the Raiders for a third-round pick. The Eagles get their pick now rather than waiting on the compensatory formula to award them one when he leaves in free agency, and the Raiders get a player with upside to put at right tackle.
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Dillard Could Be Had for Less Than a 3rd Rounder
Taking a chance on Dillard might not be the worst idea. The former first-round pick has only started nine games in three seasons. Considering his lack of starting time, he’s largely an unknown. The Eagles have had two very good tackles in Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata so there’s never been much of a chance for Dillard to prove what he can do.
However, if he was a great tackle, he would’ve been playing more. If the Raiders want to take a chance on him, it should be for less than a third-round pick. Dillard isn’t going into his second season, he’s going into his fourth and missed all of 2020 with an injury. He could still be a capable player but the Raiders would be smarter to try and get him for a fourth or fifth-round pick.
Even with more pass-blocking reps than any other OT in the class – new Eagles OT Andre Dillard allowed a top-5 pressure rate last season at Washington State
General Manager Concerned for Raiders OL & DL
The Raiders now have elite weapons on offense and some strong pieces on defense. The biggest things to watch this offseason are the offensive line and interior of the defensive line. One NFL general manager has concerns that the team has done enough to address those groups.
“They gotta be able to protect Carr,” the general manager told Mike Sando of The Athletic. “That is going to be a big part of it, and their O-line was just OK last year. It will be interesting to see how they do. Defensively, they signed Chandler Jones, but look at their D-line on the inside. Who is playing D-tackle for them? And they don’t have picks to go get one.”
The new coaching staff can work some magic and perhaps these concerns won’t be issues but it’s worth keeping an eye on.
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