5 Raiders players to watch until team moves to Las Vegas
Now that the Raiders are on their way to Las Vegas, fans need to know who exactly is coming.
Well, OK, no one knows for sure which players will be on the team when it relocates to Las Vegas, be it in 2018 or beyond, but here are the key Raiders to keep an eye on as they play at least one more season in Oakland, California:
DEFENSIVE END KHALIL MACK
He was the NFL Defensive Player of the Year after recording 11 sacks, intercepting six passes and forcing five fumbles. He has 26 sacks in the past two seasons combined. He’s a hybrid end/linebacker who was selected to two spots on The Associated Press’ 2015 All-Pro team, the first time that has happened. Gets better late in games, with his 11 fourth-quarter sacks since 2015 the most in the NFL.
QUARTERBACK DEREK CARR
UNLV fans remember him from his record-setting days at Fresno State, and Carr has transferred that success to the Raiders. He took the Raiders from 3-13 as a rookie in 2014 to 12-4 last season. The Raiders were in position to try to claim a first-round bye in the AFC playoffs last season before Carr broke his right leg. He has thrown for more than 3,000 yards in each of his three seasons, and last season he tossed 28 touchdown passes to six interceptions.
WIDE RECEIVER AMARI COOPER
He quickly established himself as one of the league’s top receivers with 155 catches for 2,223 yards and 11 touchdowns in his two seasons. The Raiders’ acquisition of free agent Cordarrelle Patterson should stretch the field and create more opportunities for Cooper to make plays. He faced more double teams late last season, catching 12 passes for 173 yards in his final six games compared with 52 receptions for 787 yards before then.
LEFT GUARD KELECHI OSEMELE
He was named first-team All-Pro in his first season in Oakland after spending the previous four years with the Baltimore Ravens. Osemele was a major reason behind the Raiders’ effective ground game, which averaged 120.1 yards to rank sixth in the league. The Raiders also led the NFL in allowing the fewest sacks (18), and Pro Football Focus said Osemele didn’t give up any of them and allowed just 11 quarterback pressures.
OUTSIDE LINEBACKER BRUCE IRVIN
After playing four years with the Seattle Seahawks, he recorded seven sacks in his debut season with the Raiders. That was the second-highest total of his career, just shy of the eight sacks he had as a rookie in 2012. His six forced fumbles were easily a career high; Irvin had one in each of his first four seasons. With Mack, the Raiders have two players who make it difficult for opposing offenses to focus on stopping just one defender.
Follow all of our Oakland Raiders to Las Vegas coverage online at reviewjournal.com/Raiders and @NFLinVegas on Twitter.
Contact Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2914. Follow @markanderson65 on Twitter.
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