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One of the most notable things that happened early in free agency was Kyle Long coming out of retirement. The three-time Pro Bowler is the son of Raiders legend Howie Long so it seemed like he would be a logical fit with the team. They brought him in for a visit and he even stayed overnight to have a workout the next day.
He ended up leaving Las Vegas without a contract, which led to a lot of speculation. Many thought that Long didn’t want to sign with the Raiders because the team is a mess. However, that might not actually be the case. According to the man himself, the Raiders didn’t even make him a contract offer.
That certainly clears a lot of things up. There were some rumors mentioned by The Athletic’s Vic Tafur that suggested Long didn’t have a great workout with the Raiders. Considering he’s not getting paid much by the Chiefs, it’s safe to assume that he’s not exactly a Pro Bowl-level player anymore.
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Raiders Really Didn’t Need Long
There’s no doubt it would’ve been exciting had the Raiders made a deal with Long. His dad one of the team’s most famous and revered players. It would’ve been perfect to see his son suit up in silver and black. That said, there wasn’t really any other reason for the team to target him other than his last name.
Long can play tackle but he’s more suited to play guard. The Raiders re-signed Richie Incognito and Denzelle Good this offseason. There’s no reason to believe that Long is better than either of those guys. When Incognito was last healthy, he was playing at a Pro Bowl-level while Good has been really strong for the Raiders over the last two years. The team will likely go after a right tackle in the draft so it’s hard to see how Long would’ve fit with the group. Also, he hasn’t played a full season since 2015. It would’ve been very risky to rely on a guy who has no track record of being able to stay healthy.
Raiders’ Offensive Line Should Be Fine in 2021
Based on this offseason, there’s a lot of panic surrounding the Raiders’ offensive line. They traded Rodney Hudson, Trent Brown and Gabe Jackson recently, who were all Week 1 starters last year. Losing those three guys could be bad news.
However, the Raiders didn’t need to get rid of any of them. The fact that they moved shows that they have confidence in other players. Kolton Miller is a solid left tackle and Incognito is an elite left guard when healthy. The team has a ton of belief in Andre James at center and Good shouldn’t be too much of a downgrade at right guard from Jackson. The biggest question mark is right tackle. If the Raiders can’t figure out what to do there, things could get ugly. What will likely happen is the team will draft one in the early rounds. If they find a stud in the draft, then the Raiders actually have a pretty solid offensive line.
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