Getty Las Vegas Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels.
Despite making the playoffs last season, the Las Vegas Raiders have plenty of needs heading into free agency. Wide receiver and offensive line will be talked about a lot but the team also has a big need at cornerback. 2020 first-round pick Damon Arnette was cut during the season and Casey Hayward is a free agent. Trayvon Mullen has shown flashes but it remains to be seen if he can be a No. 1 cornerback.
The Raiders could benefit from targeting a proven commodity at the position this offseason. They’ve tried addressing the position in the draft in recent years and it hasn’t worked out. It’s time to switch up the approach. As fortune would have it, one of the NFL’s best cornerbacks is headed for free agency and he has familiarity with the new Raiders coach staff.
New England Patriots cornerback J.C. Jackson is coming off a season in which he was named second-team All-Pro and caught eight interceptions. Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler should be very familiar with the cornerback. Maurice Moton of Bleacher Report sees Jackson as a good fit in Las Vegas:
With a projected $18.9 million in cap space, the Raiders must take a strategic approach with big-money deals, but they have enough to make a competitive offer for Jackson. With the salary cap set to increase, Las Vegas can restructure a couple of contracts, sign a top-dollar free agent and still have some financial cushion to make other moves.
In New England, new Raiders general manager Dave Ziegler and head coach Josh McDaniels had a close-up view of Jackson as he worked his way up the depth chart from an undrafted free agent out of Maryland in 2018 to one of the top man-coverage cornerbacks across the league.
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Jackson Recently Called out Patriots
The Patriots are built on defense and that should be the case even more so in 2022 with McDaniels and much of the offensive staff bolting to Las Vegas. It’s hard to see why they’d let Jackson walk in free agency but it appears to be an option. The star cornerback recently called out the team for not communicating with him about a new contract.
“I guess they feel like they don’t need me,” Jackson told NBC Sports Boston’s Phil Perry. “I guess I can’t be that important to them. I know I am, but they’re not showing me.”
Jackson was forced to play on a second-round restricted free agent tender last season worth just $3.384 million. He’s going to want to get paid this offseason and the franchise tag is on the table. The Patriots haven’t been afraid to move on from pricey players in the past so they could let Jackson walk. The Raiders should watch the situation closely.
Let the J.C. Jackson sweepstakes begin 🍿
Raiders Could Really Use a Player Like Jackson
As a team, the Raiders only had six interceptions all of last season, which is two less than what Jackson had by himself. The team has not been good at creating turnovers. One thing that Jackson does is create turnovers. He leads the NFL with 17 interceptions over the last two seasons combined.
He’s also very good in coverage. He’s one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL iand s only 26-years-old. If there’s any player the Raiders should consider giving a big contract to this offseason, it’s Jackson.
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