#4 Raiders do a lot of spring cleaning on defense
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The Las Vegas Raiders have been cleaning house on defense during this offseason, and there were a lot of unexpected casualties. One example of this was David Irving, who had re-signed with the Raiders earlier this year and then was released a month or so later. Jeff Heath, Maurice Hurst, and Kemah Silverand were also released, leaving the team with big holes to fill. Fortunately for the Raiders, they acquired Tyree Gillispie, Nate Hobbs, and Casey Haywood Jr. Whether these changes result in a better defense or not remains to be seen, but there’s hope.
The key to the season, though, will undoubtedly be the defense’s ability to gel as a team and John Gruden’s willingness to make needed changes on the fly.
#3 Henry Ruggs III open to new things in 2021
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It’s no secret that Henry Ruggs III didn’t have the rookie season fans were expecting in 2020, leading some to wonder if the Raiders made a mistake when they took him in the first round over several other top picks. Ruggs III didn’t do himself any favors by only going 26-43 for two touchdowns. Fortunately for Raiders fans hoping to see an uptick in his offensive production, he spoke with ESPN about being ready to try new things in 2021.
“I mean, I can always develop in all areas — adding strength, adding versatility, moving around in different positions, running different routes, expanding my route tree, doing different things, finding different ways to try and help the team out, ” Ruggs III said when asked about his plans for the upcoming season. “That’s pretty much me. I’m open to all of it and I’m excited going forward to learn and do new things for the team.”
#2 The Las Vegas Raiders could have a deadly combo with Joshua Jacobs and Kenyan Drake
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Why Kenyan Drake?
That has been the question circulating around Raider Nation, and while some see Drake’s brilliance, others are confused when the team already has a pro bowl running back in Joshua Jacobs. However, the problem with that thinking is it doesn’t consider that Jacobs could have an off day or go down with an injury.
“Kenyan Drake comes here from Arizona a lot of people say: ‘Why Kenyan Drake?'” Head Coach Jon Gruden said during an interview. “Well, Doug Martin had 190 touches three years ago when (Marshawn) Lynch went down, and DeAndre Washington had 144 touches when (Josh) Jacobs went down two years ago, and this past year Josh went down and Devontae Booker got 110 touches So we’re going to try to circulate the touches Kenyan Drake’s way. He’s a guy that’s made big plays.”
#1 Las Vegas Raiders head coach, Jon Gruden, name top playcaller in NFL
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Believe it or not, pro football focus ranked Jon Gruden as the fourth-best playcaller in the league, leaving many Raiders critics with their jaw on the floor. Of course, a lot of that has to do with the former Super Bowl-winning coach going 19-29 in his latest stint with the Raiders, but they want fans to look past that record. Instead, they want you to focus on his ability to put together a strong offense that is capable of getting to the endzone in several different ways.
While the Raiders didn’t struggle on offense at times, especially with Henry Ruggs III growing into his new role, the team still managed to be the 10th ranked defense in the league, which is a huge accomplishment for a squad that missed the playoffs. Again, some fans are probably going to take issue with the idea of Gruden as a good play-caller, but Eric Eager points out how much of a difference-maker Gruden can be at times on offense. One could say he knows the secret ingredients to some level of success.
This one is tough to explain since Gruden is very much part of the grocery shopping for a team that has brought home rotten vegetables and expired canned goods in both the draft and free agency. Be that as it may, Gruden is still a pretty good chef with these ingredients, as evidenced by the fact that the Raiders ranked 10th in the NFL in yards per play offensively despite having the league s 17th-ranked pass-blocking unit, 26th-ranked run-blocking unit, and 18th-ranked running game by PFF grades. Derek Carr has performed really well the past two years, and the Raiders are 15-17 despite fielding one of the league s worst defenses during that stretch.
