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An Overview of the Las Vegas Raiders Defense
The 2023 Raiders played pretty good defense and seemed like a squad on the rise. From that perspective, the 2024 version was disappointing. They were not horrible, but were the definition of below average. Las Vegas finished 13th against the run and 15th versus the pass. Their 38 sacks ranked 22nd, their 13 takeaways ranked 29th, and they were 25th in scoring. With an offense that struggled as well, the organization elected to blow everything up and start over yet again.
The Raiders organization has long been recognized as a team that does things differently. It's rather rare for a team to bring in a new head coach without replacing everyone on the staff. Pete Carroll got the nod as head coach, bringing in new blood virtually everywhere except defensive coordinator, where Patrick Graham was retained and extended. Some will point out that returning Graham for a fifth season will provide continuity. While it will not hurt, it would be a much bigger factor if they kept some of the players around as well. It is also important to note that injuries, particularly along the defensive line and in the secondary, played a significant role in the decline.
If we count Malcolm Koonce, who missed all of last year with a torn ACL, Las Vegas will be sporting at least six new starters on defense in week one. They lost some pretty good players, and they added some pretty good players. There were no NFL superstars on either side of the ledger, but there are some heavy hitters involved in fantasy terms. It is too early to say what effect the shakeup will have on the field. At least we can make an educated guess about how it will look on the stat sheets.
Las Vegas Raiders Defensive Linemen
There was not a single issue or injury that caused the Raiders' defensive decline, but it's easy to identify the biggest contributor. Maxx Crosby is the cornerstone of this unit. He is a beast both on the field and in the box scores. Over his first three years as a pro, Crosby put up decent numbers while showing a lot of promise. In 2022, it all came together for him. That season, he piled up 89 total tackles, including 58 solos, which was then a career-high 12.5 sacks, and forced 4 turnovers on his way to being the fantasy game's top edge defender. In 2023, Crosby proved it was not a fluke by going 55-35-14.5 with 3 turnovers on his way to another top-five finish.
Crosby opened the 2024 campaign with 11 tackles, 3 sacks, and a batted pass before suffering a high ankle sprain in week three. For most players, a high ankle sprain means a couple of months off. Crosby missed week four, then returned to record four and a half sacks before aggravating the injury in week fourteen and being shut down.
Without taking time to research how many players in NFL history have recorded 59.5 or more sacks by the age of 27, I'll just say the list is short and Crosby is on it. We already knew he was one of the elite edge defenders in the game. Now we know he is among the toughest as well.
Crosby had minor surgery to speed up the healing process and is good to go for 2025. He is one of the rare defensive linemen to consistently see 100% of the snaps. Even when hobbled by the ankle, he never came off the field in nine of the eleven games he started. There is no reason to believe Crosby will not return to form and take his place as an elite tier edge-1.
The injury to Crosby was compounded by the loss of Malcolm Koonce, who tore his ACL before the season started. Koonce was the team's third-round pick in 2021. He was virtually invisible for two years, combining for eight tackles, four assists, and a pair of sacks over that span. Through week eight of the 2023 season, he was 8-7-0. Then the lights suddenly came on.
Over the final nine games, Koonce racked up 24-4-8, including 6 sacks over the final four contests. He was set to be the starter heading into last season, though he and 2023 first-round pick Tyree Wilson were expected to share time. With Koonce sidelined, it was Wilson's chance to shine. Things went from bad to worse for the Raiders when Wilson left the week one game with a knee sprain.
Wilson missed one game but was hampered by a sore knee for several weeks. He started looking better around week eight, but was never 100%. Over his last eight games, Wilson was 13-9-4.5 on 356 plays, while sharing time with K'Lavon Chaisson.
Chaisson is gone, leaving Charles Snowden as the number four man on the depth chart. With Crosby taking all the snaps on one edge, we should see Koonce and Wilson splitting time at the other. Between them, they should be productive for the Raiders. The problem for fantasy managers is that neither is likely to own a lion's share of the playing time. There is good potential here with both of these players, so put this situation on the watch list and see if one of them emerges.
Injuries were the theme for the Raiders' defensive line last year. The organization landed the brightest gem free agency had to offer at the defensive tackle position when they signed Christian Wilkins. He was off to a strong start before suffering a fracture in his left foot in week five. Wilkins recently suffered a setback that will require a second surgery and is likely to miss the 2025 season.
With Wilkins out of action, Adam Butler stepped in as the three-technique tackle. The seven-year veteran had never been an IDP factor with the Patriots or Dolphins, but he stepped up big for the Raiders. Butler has 27 career sacks, so his five last year were not a surprise. With a career best of 34 combined stops heading into the campaign, his 36 solos and 29 assists certainly were. Throw in a forced fumble and a couple of batted passes, and Butler was an unexpected addition to the top ten.
The rule of thumb when it comes to players having a breakout season well into their careers is to not believe it unless there is a tangible reason why it happened. In Butler's case, there is such a reason. It was the first time he had an opportunity to hold a starting role in a scheme that allowed him to prosper. There is a chance he will prove to be a one-year wonder. That is enough to avoid drafting him as a DT1. However, I feel pretty good about picking Butler up as a second starter.
No other Las Vegas interior lineman provides much reason for optimism from an IDP perspective. Former Jets starter Leki Fotu will get the call at nose tackle. Second-year man Jonah Laulu will compete with Former Bengals third-round pick Zach Carter and rookies Tonka Hemingway and JJ Pegues to establish the pecking order behind the starters.
- DE Maxx Crosby – Ready to return to elite status
- DE Malcolm Koonce – Sleeper with good potential
- DE Tyree Wilson – Sleeper with good potential
- DE Charles Snowden – No impact expected
- DT Christian Wilkins – Likely out for the season
- DT Adam Butler – Target as a low-end DT2 with upside
- DT Leki Fotu – No impact
- DT Jonah Laulu – Injury sleeper
- DT Tonka Hemingway – Dynasty watch list
- DT JJ Pegues – No grand expectations
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