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The Las Vegas Raiders‘ cornerback depth chart is going to look quite different in 2024 than it did at the start of 2023. David Long Jr. was one of the cornerbacks the team brought in last season to compete for a starting spot but only lasted eight games before he was cut.
Long has been waiting to find his next in free agency for months but finally has a landing spot. The New York Giants announced on May 1 that they’ve signed the veteran cornerback.
Long spent the first four years of his career with the Los Angeles Rams. After getting cut by the Raiders last season, he spent some time with the Green Bay Packers and Carolina Panthers. He’s only started in 12 games in his career so he’ll likely be a depth piece for the Giants.
New York hired a defensive coordinator in Shane Bowen this offseason so there’ll be an opportunity for new players like Long to earn spots in the cornerback rotation.
Las Vegas Raiders Still Need to Add CB
The Raiders have been surprisingly quiet when it comes to addressing the cornerback position this offseason. It was considered one of the team’s biggest positions of need but they didn’t make any notable free agent signings and waited until the fourth round of the draft to add one.
As of now, it looks like Nate Hobbs will start in the slot and Jack Jones will be one of the starting outside cornerbacks. Jakorian Bennett and Brandon Facyson will likely compete for the other outside cornerback starting spot. Facyson was injured much of last season while Bennett went into last season as a starter but was quickly benched.
Bennett has a ton of upside but Facyson is more of a proven veteran. The Raiders could also add a veteran to start opposite Jones. There are big names still available in free agency like Xavien Howard, Stephon Gilmore and Patrick Peterson. Any of those players shouldn’t be too expensive and could be an upgrade over what the team currently has. It’s possible the Raiders will wait until after OTAs to address the position so they have a better idea of what they’re working with.
Tom Telesco Is Fan of Current CBs
The reason the Raiders haven’t been aggressive in adding cornerback could be due to the fact that the team is high on the players they already have. Prior to the draft, general manager Tom Telesco had a lot of positive things to say about the group.
“It’s a relatively young room,” Telesco said during the March 21 episode of the “2024 Raiders Free Agency Show.” “I mean, [Nate] Hobbs is a proven player and a really good player. And Brandon Facyson – I know he was hurt most of last year … but he’s had some good points of his career.
“But the rest of the guys are really young, including Jack [Jones]. But man, he really flashed last year, certainly flashed here as a player. You can’t have enough good corners; you have to be able to cover people in this league. The rush helps, but you still got to cover. So, it’s still a work in progress in that room, but we’ve got some pieces there.”
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