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The Las Vegas Raiders offensive line has been better than expected but still not a great group. Quarterback Derek Carr has only been sacked nine times this season. There have been 12 quarterbacks who have been sacked more.
However, there is still concern about the offensive line. Pro Football Focus has the Raiders ranked as the 28th offensive line in the NFL. They’ve shown signs of progress in recent weeks but the two guard spots are major concerns. Rookie Dylan Parham appears to be the answer at right guard but left guard is still up in the air. Alex Bars has started two games for the Raiders this season but has a PFF grade of 35.3. The team can certainly do better. Alex Ballentine of Bleacher Report believes that the team could land Chicago Bears guard Michael Schofield in a trade for a late-round pick:
Michael Schofield stands out as a possible exception, though. The guard played 907 snaps last season, giving up just two sacks while earning a respectable 66.8 grade from PFF.
The 31-year-old is currently on the Chicago Bears roster but has yet to see any action.
With the Bears in a full-on rebuild, it would be worth the Raiders at least calling to see if a Day 3 pick might be enough to entice them into sending him to Vegas.
Schofield Is a Super Bowl Champion
Schofield isn’t a huge name but he’s a solid veteran. He’s started in 81 career games and even has a Super Bowl ring. He was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the third round of the 2014 NFL Draft. He quickly earned a starting spot and was part of the 2015 Broncos team that won the Super Bowl.
Since then, he’s bounced around the league quite a bit and has played for Los Angeles Chargers, Carolina Panthers and Baltimore Ravens. He’s never had a PFF grade over 72.0 but has always been able to stay above 50.0. That’s at least better than what Bars is bringing the Raiders. He’s not starting for the Bears and is only making $1.1 million this season. It should be easy to land him in a trade if Las Vegas wants to.
Bars Talks Elevation to Starting Lineup
Bars spent most of the offseason and training camp with the Raiders but didn’t make the team during final roster cuts. He was brought back via the practice squad and now is getting a chance to play meaningful reps.
“On practice squad, I was working every day to be on the active roster in a starting position. I was preparing every day to get to that point, ” Bars said, via Raiders.com. “Studying tape, preparing like I was starting, doing extra in the weight room, doing everything I could to make sure I was ready come game time.”
Head coach Josh McDaniels has been impressed with Bars thus far.
“Alex has been a consistent contributor to us here the last few weeks,” McDaniels said recently. “He’s had great effort, a great mindset and attitude the entire time he’s been here, and just consistently tries to work at his craft. I think he’s given us some dependable play over there. He’s been pretty physical. The communication on the left side has been pretty good.”
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