Raiders Offseason Preview: Impending Free Agents, Draft Picks, and Top Needs

The Las Vegas Raiders didn't just lose 13 games this season. They also lost the race to the bottom.

Raider Nation entered the season uneasy about their quarterback situation, and their worst nightmares came true. Gardner Minshew and Aidan O'Connell were ineffective to the point where Davante Adams begged his way out of town and Vegas had control of the No. 1 pick entering Week 16.

Unfortunately for their fans, a pair of late wins also took away the effortless projection of Cam Ward or Shedeur Sanders in silver and black. That could be one of the reasons that new minority owner Tom Brady appeared to have a hand in letting head coach Antonio Pierce and general manager Tom Telesco go in the first week of the offseason.

There's work to be done for Las Vegas, but Brady's adult-in-the-room presence, a ton of cap space, and foundational players at a lot of the correct positions make a turnaround to competence not extremely far away.

How will the Raiders approach a challenging offseason after staring up at three playoff teams in the AFC West this year?

Raiders' 2024 Schedule-Adjusted Rankings

• Overall Offense: 29th
• Pass Offense: 24th
• Rush Offense: 32nd
• Overall Defense: 16th
• Pass Defense: 24th
• Rush Defense: 15th

Raiders' Impending 2025 Free Agents

• Marcus Epps, S
• Robert Spillane, LB
• Harrison Bryant, TE
• John Jenkins, DT
• Cody Whitehair, G
• Alexander Mattison, RB
• Trevon Moehrig, S
• Ameer Abdullah, RB
• Adam Butler, DT
• Malcolm Koonce, DE
• Divine Deablo, LB
• Darnay Holmes, CB
• Nate Hobbs, CB
• D.J. Turner, WR (RFA)
• Janarius Robinson, DE (RFA)
• Luke Masterson, LB (RFA)
• Isaiah Pola-Mao, S (RFA)
• Kana'i Mauga, LB (RFA)
• Jordan Meredith, G (ERFA)
• Matthew Butler, DT (ERFA)

Though Spotrac's list of Raiders free agents is long, there aren't a ton of huge, impact names to the team on it.

Robert Spillane is the most productive starter here. He was sixth in the NFL with 91 tackles. Trevon Moehrig and Divine Deablo were two of the few early Jon Gruden draft picks that turned into starters for the team. Moehrig was Pro Football Focus (PFF)'s 60th-ranked safety, but Deablo took a step back in 2024 after 106 tackles last season.

They're probably okay to let former priority free agent Marcus Epps walk after a dismal tenure, which included the 16th-worst grade at safety that PFF handed out this year.

Malcolm Koonce didn't play a down due to a knee injury in 2024 after 8.0 sacks in 2023. Assuming all is good medically, he's likely the highest priority on the list for Vegas to resign.

In one of the deepest running back drafts ever, we'll see if Las Vegas entirely reshapes that room after hit-and-miss production from veterans Ameer Abdullah and Alexander Mattison.

Raiders' 2025 NFL Draft Picks

• 6th overall
• 2nd round
• 3rd round
• 3rd round (via New York Jets)
• 4th round
• 5th round
• 6th round
• 7th round

(NOTE: This list does not fully include compensatory picks, which are typically announced in early March.)

The Raiders won a pair of late meaningless games over the Jacksonville Jaguars and New Orleans Saints to tumble outside the top five, which makes their offseason a challenge to get what the team so desperately needs.

If Las Vegas is aiming to move up for a quarterback, they at least have a bit of additional ammo by way of the third-rounder from the Adams trade -- and a good one.

We'll see which needs are remaining after what's sure to be a busy free agency priod for the Raiders' new general manager and head coach, but none of it truly matters for winning in 2025 if they don't significantly upgrade their signal-caller in one of the league's toughest divisions.

Team's Top Offseason Needs

• Quarterback, quarterback, and quarterback
• Juice at running back
• A foundational back-seven player or two to help an elite defensive line

Most teams at the top of the draft could use a Jayden Daniels-esque buoy to win in 2025 and might try to find it.

Not many of them are in the situation the Raiders are. They had a league-average defense despite missing Malcolm Koonce, Maxx Crosby, and Christian Wilkins for a combined 34 games of 51 possible. They have Brock Bowers, Jakobi Meyers, and five of PFF's top-20 offensive linemen at their position. They're just missing a guy at the sport's most important position. He doesn't need to be Daniels.

I didn't perform any trades in my first 2025 NFL Mock Draft but hinted at the most obvious one. Las Vegas and Cleveland seem primed to swap spots; the Browns get capital to survive the Deshaun Watson deal, and Las Vegas gets their guy who has a close relationship with Tom Brady.

If that's in place, the Raiders are ready to roll. I mocked them Arizona Wildcats receiver Tetairoa McMillan if they get stuck at No. 6, but pass-catcher isn't an immediate need. Free agency could be the spot they add a running mate for Meyers.

For the rest of what picks they may keep, Las Vegas could double dip into one of the deepest running back drafts in recent memory, and they're not crazy to add a linebacker or corner in hopes of finding a key piece to make the best of Crosby's disruption.

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