Las Vegas Raiders

With $16.1M in current room and $51.8M in dead money dragging the books, the Raiders are financially handcuffed this season, but next year's projected $59.7M in space is when the real roster work begins.

18 contracts expiring

Madden Tools Analysis

Six starting spots have weak depth behind the starter.

Six picks this draft, all in the first six rounds, plus 20 selections over the next three years including three first-rounders, gives this rebuild real ammunition to fill the roster holes that free agency alone cannot solve.

• Traded away: Round 7 to Bills, this draft

The roster's clear top strength is the edge-rushing tandem anchored by Maxx Crosby, while the weakest spot is an interior defensive line that lacks any starter-caliber presence at the top of the depth chart.

• DThigh

  The defensive tackle unit ranks last in the league at the starter level and 29th in depth, with Folorunso Fatukasi and Adam Butler as the top two options, making interior pass rush an urgent priority.

• FShigh

  Treydan Stukes starts at free safety but ranks 27th among starters, and the depth behind him is thin enough that upgrading this spot should be a near-term focus.

• LGhigh

  Spencer Burford holds the starting left guard job but ranks 31st among starters leaguewide, leaving a glaring hole in what should be a strength given the talent elsewhere on the line.

• RThigh

  Trey Zuhn III is the starting right tackle and the position's depth actually ranks fourth in the league, but the starter himself ranks 27th, meaning an upgrade at the top of the depth chart is needed.

• WRhigh

  Tre Tucker leads the receiver room as the WR1 but ranks 31st among starting wideouts, making wide receiver the most pressing offensive skill-position need on the roster.

• QBmedium

  Kirk Cousins starts at quarterback but ranks 25th leaguewide among starters, and with Fernando Mendoza sitting second on the depth chart, finding a long-term answer under center is a medium-term necessity.

• MIKElow

  Nakobe Dean holds the starting mike spot but ranks 23rd, and with Tommy Eichenberg as the primary backup, the position could use a talent infusion in the mid-term.

• REDGElow

  Kwity Paye starts opposite Maxx Crosby and ranks 20th at the position, with Keyron Crawford as a promising 22-year-old Star trait backup who could push for more snaps.

• 67Aidan O'ConnellQBAidan O'Connell sits third on the quarterback depth chart behind Cousins and Mendoza at 67 overall, and releasing him frees $3.7M against only $120K in dead money, making him an easy cap cleanup.Frees $3.7M · $120.0K dead
• 78Malcolm KoonceLEDGEMalcolm Koonce is the LEDGE2 behind Maxx Crosby at 78 overall but carries a release cost that actually results in $5.8M of dead money against only $5.3M freed, meaning cutting him costs more than it saves this season.Frees $5.3M · $5.8M dead
• 66Thomas Booker IVDTThomas Booker IV is a 66-overall backup defensive tackle in a group that already ranks last in the league, and releasing him frees $3.7M with zero dead money, making him a clean cap cut with no financial downside.Frees $3.7M · $0 dead
• 71Isaiah Pola-MaoFSIsaiah Pola-Mao is the FS2 at 71 overall behind starter Treydan Stukes, and cutting him frees $3.3M against $1.1M in dead money, clearing a net positive while the team pursues a real upgrade at the position.Frees $3.3M · $1.1M dead
• 62Tristin McCollumFSTristin McCollum sits third on the free safety depth chart at 62 overall and releasing him costs nothing in dead money while recovering $1.1M in cap space.Frees $1.1M · $0 dead

The Raiders carry a genuinely elite defensive centerpiece in Maxx Crosby and a dynamic offensive foundation in Brock Bowers and Ashton Jeanty, but the gaps around those stars are significant enough to make contention a multi-year project. Kirk Cousins, entering the twilight of his career, is a short-term bridge at best, and the receiver corps ranked 31st in the league gives him almost nothing to work with. The offensive line has a legitimate anchor in Kolton Miller and Tyler Linderbaum, but left guard and right tackle are among the weakest spots in football. Defensively, the interior is a serious liability despite Crosby's dominance off the edge, and free safety needs an upgrade. The current cap picture is constrained, with $16.1M in room and a heavy $51.8M dead-money load, but next year's projected $59.7M in space opens a genuine window to reshape the roster. Six picks in the current draft and 20 selections over the next three years, including three first-rounders, give the front office real resources to build depth and address the starter-level holes. Kolton Miller remains an elite anchor but will need a succession plan at left tackle as his career progresses. The young core of Bowers, Jeanty, Treydan Stukes, Keyron Crawford, and Jackson Powers-Johnson gives the rebuild a credible foundation, and if the cap situation is managed well through the next two offseasons, this roster can realistically compete in seasons three and four.

The Raiders were founded on January 30, 1960, in Oakland, California, as the eighth charter franchise of the American Football League (AFL), joining as a late replacement after the Minneapolis franchise defected to the NFL. After three losing early seasons, the club hired Al Davis as head coach and general manager in 1963; Davis installed an aggressive vertical passing attack, winning the 1967 AFL Championship and reaching Super Bowl II. Davis became part-owner in 1966 and eventually principal owner, ruling with the motto "Just win, baby" until his death in 2011. The Raiders joined the NFL in the 1970 AFL-NFL merger. Under head coach John Madden (1969-1978) they won their first Super Bowl (XI) after the 1976 season, and Tom Flores led the team to a second title in Super Bowl XV after the 1980 season. In 1982, after Davis won a landmark antitrust battle with the NFL, the franchise relocated to Los Angeles, where the Raiders won Super Bowl XVIII following the 1983 season, the franchise's third title. Davis returned the team to Oakland in 1995; the second Oakland era included a Super Bowl XXXVII appearance after the 2002 season. The NFL approved the team's move to Las Vegas in 2017, and the Raiders began play at Allegiant Stadium as the Las Vegas Raiders in 2020. All told, the franchise has won three Super Bowls, one AFL Championship, and numerous division titles across its Oakland, Los Angeles, and Las Vegas eras.