How Will the Raiders Decide on the CB Room?

The Las Vegas Raiders are preparing to cut their active roster down to 53 players on Tuesday.

Coach Josh McDaniels and General Manager Dave Ziegler are going to have a difficult time deciding which players to keep on the 53-man roster and which ones to either place on the practice squad or allow to join another team.

One group they might evaluate more extensively than others is their cornerback room. The Raiders have a healthy balance of experience and youth when it comes to their corners.

Let’s take a closer look at the Raiders’ cornerback group and see which players are going to be Raiders for the regular season, and which ones may be on the outside looking in.

Our Hondo S. Carpenter Sr. projected the Raiders to keep six cornerbacks: Jakorian Bennett, Marcus Peters, Duke Shelley, David Long Jr., Nate Hobbs and Amik Robertson.

This would leave off players like Tyler Hall, Sam Webb, Azizi Hearn, and Brandon Facyson. Do any of these four have a chance to unseat any of the aforementioned six corners?

Hall has arguably the best chance, as he took on a strong role in the second half of the 2022 season and was graded as one of the top defensive players on the Raiders by Pro Football Focus. Facyson, a one-time Raider, signed a one-year deal this March.

Webb is entering his second season as a Raider, after posting 36 tackles with three pass break ups and a forced fumble last year. Hearn is an undrafted free agent out of UCLA. Do either of them have a shot at making the roster?

Robertson had a rough preseason, allowing eight receptions on 12 targets for 99 yards. While a preseason performance is not always indicative of a player’s talent level, Robertson did not play well.

Hobbs has been a productive player when healthy and has started 20 games in two seasons with the Raiders. Peters is a four time first-team All-Pro with 32 career interceptions. Bennett’s athleticism was impressive throughout the preseason.

Long signed with the Raiders during free agency after spending the last four seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, and has proven himself to be an adequate starter. Shelley was also a free agent signing, posting excellent numbers with the Minnesota Vikings last season.

The Raiders have a lot of talent in their cornerback room, and McDaniels’ and Ziegler’s job will not be easy when deciding which players to keep. What is well known is that this is a young cornerback room, and whoever makes the 53-man roster will be key in a Raiders’ defensive turnaround.

The Silver and Black open the regular season at the Denver Broncos on Sunday, Sept. 10, at 4:25 p.m. EDT/1:25 p.m. PDT.

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