Las Vegas Raiders

Oakland Raiders Not Getting Returns on Defensive Investments

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Sep 18, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders free safety Reggie Nelson on the field before the start of the game against the Atlanta Falcons. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

This is supposed to be the year for the Oakland Raiders but two games in, it doesn’t look that way! If things continue to go this way, the Raiders will have wasted a lot of money this offseason.

Oakland Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie’s philosophy has always been to build through the draft. His last few drafts are solid but went big into the free agent market this offseason. Of all the big-money acquisitions, OG Kelechi Osemele is a hit.

But the acquisitions they made for the defense add up to a zero return their investments so far. Those investments total $23 million this year alone for three players. I know we’re only two games in but these aren’t draft picks, they’re veterans.

I didn’t expect the No. 1 defense in the NFL after two games but I didn’t expect the worst either. Yet there the Raiders are, the worst defense in the league after two games, giving up 35 points per game. The Raiders aren’t going to win anything with that kind of defense.

And the three players the Raiders spent all that money on are definitely a part of the problem. I thought the days of going to Raider Nation for a big payday and giving nothing back were over. But somehow, the Raiders have three guys giving the Raider nothing for big money.

Turn the page for a look at them.

Sep 11, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; Oakland Raiders linebacker Bruce Irvin (51) strips the ball from New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees (9). Mandatory Credit: Chuck Cook-USA TODAY Sports

Bruce Irvin: $9,250,000

The Seattle Seahawks started using OLB Bruce Irvin more in coverage, it was for a reason. He’s excellent in coverage but never became a sack master. The Seahawks have shown they know what they’re doing on defense.

In a previous article, I suggested that the Raiders moved him to ILB, where the Raiders are hurting. Irvin did an excellent job against the run and the in coverage while playing off the ball. But most of Raider Nation thinks he’s a sack master and he isn’t.

On the sack he had against the New Orleans Saints, quarterback Drew Brees held the ball for five seconds. Superstar Khalil Mack takes all the double and triple-teams. Yet Irvin can’t sack, pressure or even hit the quarterback unless he holds onto the ball for five seconds.

The Raiders didn’t pay Irvin $9.25 million to get single blocking on every play and get that. Irvin might be worth the money when in coverage shutting opposing tight ends down. The Raiders sure could have used him there against the Falcons Sunday.

Sep 11, 2016; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Saints wide receiver Brandin Cooks finishing a 98 yard touchdown. The Raiders defeated the Saints 35-34. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Sean Smith: $950,000

If you were paying attention to the preseason, you’d know Smith was a concern. When a player we have hopes for doesn’t play well in the preseason, we discard it. We say, “it’s just the preseason” and think nothing of it, laughing if someone makes a big deal of it.

The preseason is a whole lot more important that we read into. I have recently learned that it’s not about wins and losses but how certain players are playing. When a player is struggling with something in the preseason, it leaks into the regular season.

They usually don’t straighten the problem out right away just because it’s the regular season. Opposing quarterbacks have landed bombs over Baghdad on Smith from the preseason to Week 2. I thought he would play better in Week 2 than he did in Week 1 and he did.

He didn’t stop anyone but it’s not hard to do better than giving up a 98-yard TD. The Kansas City Chiefs must have known something, letting him go the way they did this offseason. It seems like he got old, slow and forgot how to play overnight.

Sep 18, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Atlanta Falcons tight end Levine Toilolo (80) is tackled by Oakland Raiders free safety Reggie Nelson (27) in the second quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

Reggie Nelson: $4,250,000

When Charles Woodson retired, Raider Nation knew the Raiders were losing a great one. But when the Raiders signed safety Reggie Nelson this offseason, they were confident in him. Afterall, he tied or the NFL lead with eight INTs last year.

But since he’s become a Raider, he’s been a part of why the Raiders are giving up so man big plays these days. You didn’t see that deep balls many completed on the Raiders when Woodson was around. The Raiders drafted a safety in the first round that’s on the bench too.

A free safety making $4.25 million this year while the secondary gets bombed on all day. That doesn’t make sense so he has to pick his play up quickly. All Nelson is doing now is making me miss Woodson and want to see first-round pick Karl Joseph more.

It would have been better for the Raiders still have Taylor Mays than what’s going on now. Nelson appears to have lost a step, decreasing his range and allowing deep balls to go over his head. Unfortunately, losing a step isn’t something that gradually shows.

Sep 18, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Atlanta Falcons running back Tevin Coleman (26) runs for a touchdown against the Oakland Raiders in the fourth quarter at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. The Falcons defeated the Raiders 35-28. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

Bottom Line

Raider Nation had it’s hopes up high after seeing the Raiders’ free agency haul this offseason. Everyone thought putting them together with the young nucleus would put them over the top. But so far, the Raiders defense is actually much worse than last year.

Most teams in the NFL that average 31.5 yards per game in two games go 2-0 in that span. But the Raiders are 1-1 because they’ve allowed 34.5 points per game and a total of 1,035 yards. That tells you that the three big signings the Raiders made for that defense did work out.

When you sign three players for $23 million, they should be a part of the solution. However, Irvin, Smith and Nelson are all a part of the problem. I’m not saying give up on the season after two games or even that the three players are bad players.

But I am saying that no matter how they do going forward they already aren’t worth the money they make. Players that make that kind of money don’t have two games in a row like this. They especially don’t play on the same defense that’s the worst in the NFL.