Curtis Bolton's Hard Work Earns Him a Roster Spot
The Las Vegas Raiders have officially announced their 53-man roster.
One player who made the cut was linebacker Curtis Bolton. Bolton joins Amari Burney, Divine Deablo, Luke Masterson and Robert Spillane as the linebackers the Raiders kept on the active roster.
This comes off the heels of an impressive preseason for Bolton, who totaled 10 tackles in three games.
Bolton, who played his college ball at Oklahoma, has been a journeyman linebacker throughout his career, bouncing around during short stints with the Green Bay Packers, Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, San Francisco 49ers and Detroit Lions before spending last season with the Raiders.
Bolton is looking to make Las Vegas his long-term team after he signed a one-year deal to return to the Raiders during free agency in March.
In his first season with the Raiders, Bolton posted five tackles and provided important special teams depth. That is one of the biggest reasons he was brought back, as he is one of the more important pieces the Raiders have on special teams.
Bolton also is one of the more athletic players the Raiders have in their linebacker room, and he could see the field on passing downs for that reason. Bolton can be a plus player in coverage, manning the middle of the field and shutting down some of the top tight ends in the AFC West.
While he did not see the field very often in 2022, the Raiders believed in him enough to keep him on the 53-man roster, and now he has a chance to cash in on that belief and see the field even more in 2023.
Bolton has the biggest opportunity of his career to be a contributor at linebacker. He earned that opportunity by performing well all throughout training camp and the preseason. Bolton forced a fumble against the San Francisco 49ers as part of a dominant defensive effort.
As the Raiders look to turn their defense around in 2023, they expect Bolton to play a part in that as a depth piece at linebacker, and will look for him to continue his excellent play on special teams.
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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