The Las Vegas Raiders needed to make some moves to show that they mean business. All offseason, head coach Pete Carroll has said that the team is ready to win now. Well, free agency will tell us whether that’s true or not.
So far, I’d say it’s true, even though the Raiders have pretty much just lost players. However, they are replacing them with players who are either at the same level or better and on cheaper deals. They lost Robert Spillane to the New England Patriots and Tre’von Moehrig to the Carolina Panthers, but both of those teams massively overpaid them just to get them in talks for a contract, let alone to sign them.
John Spytek, who learned from one of the best GMs in the business, Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ Jason Licht, wasn’t going to pay that much money when he saw other players on the market who were much cheaper and could do the same work or more at the same level or better. He did that with Jeremy Chinn and, of course, then signed former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Elandon Roberts at a much cheaper price.
But the smartest move he has made, and the biggest one you could say, too, was the decision to bring back Malcolm Koonce.
Raiders bring back DE Malcolm Koonce
The Las Vegas Raiders made a smart decision to bring back one of their best players, and certainly one of their best defensive linemen from the 2023 season. According to several reports, the Raiders are set to bring back Koonce on a one-year deal worth around $12 million, which is a great price for a guy who just tore his ACL, and still has something to prove.
The Raiders really value what he brings to the table when he’s healthy, and they want him to make a lot of money. So, hey, give him a prove it deal this year after coming back from injury, and if he’s good enough, give him a long-term contract.
It cannot be understated the type of move this was — a smart one and maybe the biggest one. This is a guy that the last half of the season in 2023 was practically unblockable and certainly unstoppable. The Raiders are banking on him returning to form, and the deal being an absolute bargain. And this gives them the ability to have some room to work with when it comes to drafting an edge rusher in this upcoming draft. You’re not tying yourself to three years of Koonce if it doesn’t work out, showing that edge rusher is not a need.
But it still is, even with Koonce back.
And, with everything we have heard from Maxx Crosby about Koonce’s work ethic, he’s likely going to be great.