For Oakland, free agency should be used to maintain continuity on offense and acquiring veteran pieces on defense—veterans who will bring on and off-field leadership. The youth on the Raiders roster will benefit from playing next to players still in their prime as opposed those on the decline.
Offensively, the maturation process of a potential franchise quarterback needs stability. Derek Carr will take direction from new offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave. For the sake of consistency, the Raiders should re-sign center Stefen Wisniewski. Despite a disappointing 2014 season, Wisniewski performed well in 2012 and 2013, per Pro Football Focus.
According to Josh Dubow of the Associated Press, Wisniewski wasn’t impressed with the initial offers from management:
Without knowledge of the initial contract offers, Wisniewski should be worth a three-year deal worth $7 million with $2 million guaranteed. His last deal was worth $4.13 million over four years.
The Raiders have plenty of depth at the wide receiver position. None of the receivers jump out as the go-to guy, but after watching Super XLIX, it’s clear that a good QB doesn’t need a pair of 1,000-yard receivers to be effective. However, Carr entering his second year needs high-end talent to aid his development until he can be considered a top-tier QB.
Andre Holmes and Rod Streater are restricted free agents. Denarius Moore is an unrestricted free agent. The unrestricted tag favors Moore in terms of his asking price.
Moore will likely cost the Raiders more cap space as he embarks on his second contract. His previous deal was a four-year, $2...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Oakland Raiders
