Las Vegas Raiders’ poor offseason and more 2021 NFL Draft notes

This week’s NFL Notes takes a look at the Las Vegas Raiders’ poor 2020 offseason, why the 49ers need to add some cornerbacks in the 2021 NFL Draft and more.

The Las Vegas Raiders finished the year with an 8-8 record and barely missed the playoffs. Their 2020 season would have been much better had they not blown a big opportunity to improve during the 2020 NFL Draft and free agency last offseason. Going into the offseason last year, the team was set to make major strides as they had plenty of cap room and two first-round picks but instead came away with players who contributed very little.

In the 2020 NFL Draft, the team drafted Henry Ruggs with the 12th overall pick and Damon Arnette with at No. 19. Neither one of these players played anything close to a first-round pick. Ruggs finished eleventh among rookie receivers in receiving yards despite being the first receiver taken in the draft. Arnette saw limited playing time this year and finished with a completion percentage of 77.8% against him ranked second-to-last among rookie cornerbacks. The team also whiffed on third-round pick Lynn Bowden as they traded him even before the season started.

In free agency, the team spent big money on players they thought would make a big impact this year including defensive lineman Carl Nassib and Maliek Collins who combined for 2.5 sacks this year. They also stroke out on the offensive side of the ball signing Jason Witten to a four million dollar deal. This season Witten finished 12th on the team in receptions, which is definitely not money well spent.

In order for Las Vegas to make it into the playoffs next year, they are going to need to do a much better job of investing its resources into players who can actually contribute.

49ers cornerback issues

One of the biggest issues the San Francisco 49ers will face this offseason is determining what to do at the cornerback position. The team currently doesn’t have any corner signed for next season, and it looks like it will lose its top corner in Richard Sherman. The 49ers will likely try and address this need in free agency as they should have some money to sign players this offseason. They will also address this need in the 2021 NFL Draft, and could easily select a corner with their first-round pick.

San Francisco is currently projected to be $13 million under the salary cap for the 2021 season. Of course, this number could fluctuate quite a bit next year when the salary cap announces the official salary cap number for next season, which is expected to drop due to loss of revenue due to Covid-19. This cap space will also decrease when the team decides which of its nearly 40 players scheduled to hit free agency to resign. Even after some of their cap space is used they should still be able to sign one or two middle of the pack free agents.

It would be wise for the San Francisco 49ers to re-sign cornerback Jason Verrett and let Richard Sherman leave via free agency. They could then bring in a corner like Desmond King and line him up as a nickel corner. This move would make sense for the team as King has been one of the best nickel corners in the NFL over the past couple of seasons, and they could get their number one corner in the draft.

In the 2021 NFL Draft, the 49ers are in a great position to get the best corner in the draft. That cornerback will likely be Alabama’s Patrick Surtain II. Surtain would be a great fit in San Francisco as he has the length the team likes and plays the physical style of play the team values. Another corner who could make sense in the first round in Virginia Tech’s Caleb Farley.

It would also be wise for the team to add some depth at this position later in the 2021 NFL Draft with one of their six Day 3 picks. A couple of cornerbacks who would make sense for the team on the last day of the draft the 2021 NFL Draft include Shaun Wade and Bryan Mills.

A good backup for Kyler Murray

While the Arizona Cardinals are set at starting quarterback with Kyler Murray, they would be wise to add a backup who plays a similar style of ball. A prospect from the 2021 NFL Draft class who the Cardinals could probably sign as an undrafted free agent that fits this bill is Louisiana’s Levi Lewis.

While Lewis is nowhere near the quarterback Murray is, the Cardinals could use him in a similar way if Murray was unable to play. Like Murray, Lewis is a great athlete who can be used in the passing game on rollout type passes. He can also be used in the run game as he has the speed to pick up plays with his feet.

Adding him to the roster would make sense for Arizona as well because current backup Chris Streveler does not fit the system the team currently runs. They also would be investing very little in Lewis so if he didn’t turn out the team lost very little.

Senior Bowl coaches

Last week the Senior Bowl announced that the Miami Dolphins and Carolina Panthers coaching staff will coach this game. Coaching at this event gives each staff a leg up when it comes to knowing the players even in a typical year.

However, this year it is even a bigger deal as it is one of the few places teams can be hands-on with players as they were not allowed to attend practices or games this year. Teams will also likely have limited access this offseason as well, as the NFL Scouting Combine will change drastically.