When it goes bad, some teams clean house completely. The Raiders did fire general manager David Ziegler and head coach Josh McDaniels. 

But they decided to keep interim head coach Antonio Pierce as their full-time head coach in 2024. And that should hopefully curry favor with star players like Davante Adams and Maxx Crosby. And possibly help lure back free agents like Josh Jacobs. 

The NFL Combine is in the books and free agency opens next week with the legal tampering period on March 11th. What we’ll do here is comb through the roster, depth chart, contracts, and salary cap for all the Raiders weapons. From there, we’ll make some predictions on what we think happens both for Raiders fans and fantasy football gamers alike. So, let’s dig in!

*The salary cap numbers referenced in this article come courtesy of our friends over at Spotrac.com*

Fantasy Football Depth Chart: Las Vegas Raiders

Quarterback

Jimmy Garoppolo

Aidan O'Connell

Brian Hoyer

Anthony Brown Jr.

Running Back

Josh Jacobs

Ameer Abdullah

Brittain Brown

Tyreik McAllister

Runng Back

Zamir White

Brandon Bolden

Sincere McCormick

Austin Walter

Wide Receiver

Davante Adams

Kristian Wilkerson

  

Wide Receiver

Jakobi Meyers

DJ Turner

  

Wide Receiver

Hunter Renfrow

Tre Tucker

DeAndre Carter

 

Tight End

Michael Mayer

Austin Hooper

Jesper Horsted

 


White = unrestricted free agent

Green = role is safe

Yellow = role could be in jeopardy

Red = could be traded or released

PROJECTED 2024 SALARIES: ~$219M

ESTIMATED 2024 CAP SPACE: ~$48M

 

Quarterback

Jimmy Garoppolo: The Raiders were already expected to release Jimmy Garoppolo before his $11.25 million dollar roster bonus was due in March when Jimmy gave them one last gift on his way out - an additional $11.25 million in cap space on top of that. That’s what his base salary was set to be in 2024 but, because Jimmy received a two-game suspension recently for PEDs, that is likely to be voided. 

So, the Raiders will escape here with $17 million in dead cap and $10 million freed up in 2024 which is far better than what the alternative would have been. At this stage, teams will certainly be interested in Jimmy for backup duties but I’m not sure a team wants to have him as their starter - especially since he’ll miss the first two games of 2024.

Aidan O'Connell: Aidan O'Connell is not the outright starter here, but he’s at least earned the right to compete for the starting job. His rookie debut wasn’t perfect but there was a lot of turmoil in the building. And there are worse QBs out there in this league getting a shot to compete. 

If any veteran or rookie draft pick they bring him outplays him this summer, then great - you’ve got your guy. In superflex or two QB leagues, I’d hold onto O’Connell for now until we know for sure he’s not going to win the job. 

Brian Hoyer: Let’s look at the pros and cons of Brian Hoyer. The pros are that he’s a veteran QB that can serve as a coach/mentor to a young QB. The cons are that he is absolutely not the answer at starter and won’t be part of that competition. 

The way his contract is set up, they would save almost nothing by releasing him but, if they could trade him, they would save $2.5 million with only ~$430K in dead cap. So, if any team wanted Hoyer as their “veteran coach QB”, the Raiders would certainly let him go for a symbolic 7th-round pick. 

Anthony Brown Jr: Anthony Brown Jr was signed to a futures contract in early January but that was before GM Tom Telesco joined the team later that month. Those contracts have zero guaranteed money tied to them so I wouldn’t be surprised to see Brown Jr end up being released.

RAIDERS QB FREE AGENCY TAKE: The Raiders should keep every avenue open. They pick at 13 in the 2024 NFL draft and, unless they have the structure of a deal in place to move up, there is no guarantee that a rookie QB they like will be there. If they are going to compete now, their best best might be a veteran in free agency or a trade for some of the names rumored to be available. Here are the best options via free agency or trade. 

POSSIBLE FREE AGENT QB OPTIONS: Kirk Cousins, Russell Wilson, Justin Fields, Ryan Tannehill, Gardner Minshew, Sam Darnold, Drew Lock

 

Running Back

Josh Jacobs: The Raiders franchise tagged Josh Jacobs last year then agreed to a one-year deal that paid him roughly a million dollars more than the tag. This year he’s an unrestricted free agent and, just this week from the combine we’ve received conflicting reports. One report suggested Jacobs could be open to a one-year deal to return to the Raiders while another beat writer said that wasn’t true and that Jacobs wants a 2–3-year deal. 

There’s also been talk that Raiders' new general manager Tom Telesco wants a committee approach. The reality of the situation to me is a lot simpler now that Josh McDaniels is out and Antonio Pierce is in. “Escaping” the Raiders is not a priority. The most important thing for a player like Josh Jacobs playing the position he plays is guaranteed money. 

If the Raiders are willing to pay, then Jacobs will be their guy. If another team will, then Jacobs will go. A lot of running backs don’t get second contracts, let alone third ones, so Jacobs needs to get paid as much as possible, guaranteed, right now. 

Zamir White: If you have Zamir White in your dynasty fantasy football league, you’re certainly hoping another team is willing to pay for the services of Josh Jacobs. White closed out the last four games of the season for the Raiders and actually looked pretty good, putting together three straight games with 100+ yards from scrimmage to end the season. 

Your first battle as a Zamir White fan is with Jacobs of course but then you have the second battle with GM Tom Telesco and his comments about needing two or three backs and not leaning on one guy. 

Ameer Abdullah: Josh McDaniels brought Abdullah in, perhaps envisioning him in a James White role of sorts. But he didn’t really pan out much as a pass catcher and didn’t contribute in the return game so I imagine he’s likely gone as an unrestricted free agent now that McDaniels is out. 

Brandon Bolden: Another name tied to McDaniels from his time in New England but Bolden does offer a bit more value as he served on SIX different special teams units: kick coverage, kick return, punt coverage, punt return, field goal, and field goal block. So Bolden could be back in the capacity if Pierce and crew want him for those services. He too is an unrestricted free agent though so no guarantees. 

Brittain Brown: Brown was a seventh round pick out of UCLA that has two years left on his deal. In his rookie year he only appeared on special teams and this past season he was placed on IR and missed the entire season. He’s a last round pick from the old regime and can be released with almost $1 million in savings and only $40K in dead cap so he’ll essentially have to make the team from scratch here. 

Austin Walter: Much like Brown, Walter was placed on injured reserve in August with an undisclosed injury. He’s a restricted free agent but they aren’t going to tender him at the $2.5 million dollar level, so he’ll also need to earn a contract as a free agent. 

Sincere McCormick/Tyreik McAllister: Both McCormick and McAllister were signed to reserve/future deals but that was by interim GM Champ Kelly before Tom Telesco joined on. They could win out a job in camp but there is no guaranteed money and odds are they end up on the practice squad if they do stick around. 

RAIDERS RB FREE AGENCY TAKE: There are a lot of names listed there. But the reality is a lot of them are either special teams or practice squad caliber players. If you convince Jacobs to come back, you have your top two backs with Jacobs and Zamir White. If not, they might be shopping for additional backs as part of Tom Telesco’s “committee approach”. 

Maybe they reunite with some of his old friends from the Charger days as part of that. If White is the lead back, here are some options to help supplement him. Bonus points if they return kicks or punts as DeAndre Carter is a free agent and there is no guarantee he is back. 

CHARGERS RB FREE AGENT OPTIONS: Josh Jacobs, Austin Ekeler, Devin Singletary, Antonio Gibson, Ty Johnson, Joshua Kelley, DeeJay Dallas, Boston Scott, Trayveon Williams

 

Wide Receiver

Davante Adams: After Josh McDaniels didn’t pan out, there were two directions Mark Davis could have taken the team. He could have gone with the nuclear approach and blown the whole thing up. Or he could attempt to appease his star players. He went the appeasement route and part of that was hiring player-favorite coach Antonio Pierce. That will keep Davante Adams happy in the offseason. 

In season, we’ve seen him have complaints both after games where they lose and games where they win but he isn’t heavily utilized. So keeping him happy all year round is another story. There were some trade rumors floating around but new GM Tom Telesco recently came out and stated definitively that “he’s a Raider”. So I expect him to be a Raider in 2024.

Jakobi Meyers: Jakobi Meyers is obviously an “old regime” guy as a Josh McDaniels former Patriot. But he’s also played well, putting up the second most yards and receptions behind Adams while tying him with a team leading eight touchdowns. Much better than his replacement did in New England, at the very least. He’s under contract for 2024 and 2025 and he’s much easier on the cap to release next year so I expect him to be a Raider in 2024 as well.  

Hunter Renfrow: Renfrow is the one I could see gone this offseason. He had a brief time in the sun, thanks in large part to Darren Waller’s injury woes, and even finished as a WR1 in fantasy football in 2021. But last year he was outshined by Meyers and only played more than 50% of the snaps in two games. If they can’t find a suitable trade candidate, he could be outright released with $8.2 mil in cap savings and $5.5 mil in dead cap.

Tre Tucker: Tre Tucker could have a bigger role in 2024. And that could come in three different phases. If Hunter Renfrow is gone, Tucker could pick up most snaps in the slot. On top of that, DeAndre Carter is an unrestricted free agent and he handled both the punt and kick duties. Tre Tucker has experience with both in college and could pick up one or both duties. 

DeAndre Carter: As we mentioned above, the experienced return manhandled both punts and kicks in 2024. In fact, he returned every single kickoff and fielded every punt but one. He’s an unrestricted free agent so they may need to fill those roles. 

DJ Turner: Turner was called up from the practice squad in November and primarily contributed on special teams, though he did play on four different units. He could be cut for very little dead cap so he’ll need to work this summer to make the team. 

Kristian Wilkerson: Wilkerson is another “old regime” guy who came over with McDaniels from New England. Not that that precludes him from making the team, but any favoritism or prior familiarity is gone. 

RAIDERS WR FREE AGENCY TAKE: The Raiders have two premium pass catchers and a young tight end they are hoping to develop. In fact, they may be looking to trade Hunter Renfrow because they can’t find enough work for him. If anything, the Raiders add depth and maybe need to figure out who is returning punts/kicks. But I doubt they go out and spend on a meaningful free agent wide receiver. 

 

Tight End

Michael Mayer: Young tight ends have unique obstacles to fantasy relevancy which we wrote about in full here. The short and sweet is that there are three hurdles that need to be overcome here.

  1. Be the top pass-catching tight end on the team
  2. Be a full-time player
  3. Be a top two target on the team

From there they still need to capitalize on that opportunity, but those are the barriers to entry. Michael Mayer was able to overcome the first one as a rookie but still split time with Austin Hooper. In year two, we are hoping he overcomes the second. But, with Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers still there, number three could be tough. So, he may still be a stash for fantasy.

Austin Hooper: Austin Hooper was the safety blanket in case Michael Mayer didn’t work out, but Mayer overtook Hooper by Week 5 and never gave the job back. It’s a thin tight end class in free agency so Hooper will definitely test the market. 

Jesper Horsted: Horsted is a converted wide receiver which we usually like for fantasy football, but he hasn’t quite caught on with a pass catching role. The journeyman is a free agent once again, so he’ll try his hand with a new team in 2024. 

Zach Gentry: They elevated Gentry from the practice squad, and it could go two ways with the former Steeler. The Raiders will need a blocking tight end in some capacity which could be gentry. But he also could be released with $1,125,000 in savings and zero dead cap so he’ll need to prove he deserves the spot. Of all the guys tied to the team outside of Mayer, he has the best bet of making the squad right now.

Cole Fotheringham: Fotheringham was called up briefly but returned to the practice squad shortly after. Like most practice squad players, he’s not under a contract with any sort of meaningful dead cap so he too will need to try and make the squad from scratch this spring.

John Samuel Shenker: Shenker is another guy who was released, added to the practice squad, then signed to a futures deal. That’s basically just an invitation to camp and, like multiple guys here, the invitation was sent before Tom Telesco showed up. 

RAIDERS TE FREE AGENCY TAKE: Despite having a lot of guys listed here, Michael Mayer is really the only guarantee to make the team. A popular set up these days is to have your starter followed by one guy that skews blocking (to come on for jumbo sets) and one guy that skews pass catching. Then, if the starter gets hurt, you use a committee approach. Here are some options for the two flavors of tight end.

RAIDERS FREE AGENT PASS-CATCHING TE OPTIONS: Mike Gesicki, Jesper Horsted, Tanner Hudson (RFA), Shane Zylstra (RFA), Anthony Firkser (cut candidate), Kylen Granson (cut candidate)

RAIDERS FREE AGENT BLOCKING TE OPTIONS: Zach Gentry, Geoff Swaim, Drew Sample, Adam Trautman, MyCole Pruitt, Tyler Kroft

NFL Free Agency Previews

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