Former Raiders Defensive Tackle Picked Up By Titans

The Las Vegas Raiders are having all kinds of problems with the interior of their defensive line, but the Tennessee Titans decided to gamble on defensive tackle Jonah Laulu when the Raiders put him on waivers, according to a report from Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk via Jordan Schultz of the Schultz Report.

Laulu is on a bit of a jouney. The 26-year old lineman was selected by the Indianapolis Cotlts in the seventh round back in 2024, but the Raiders claimed him off waivers during the preseason that year. He set the franchise record for most tackles for a defensive lineman over the first two seasons with 86, which is impressive for a franchise that boasts Maxx Crosby at defensive end. 

In five games this season, he has five tackles, three quarterback hits and half a sack. Laulu has played 110 defensive snaps and 24 on special teams, per Williams. This move may be the result of a roster crunch, as Las Vegas may have been hoping to get Laulu through waivers with receivers Jack Bech and Dont’e Thornton returning to practice this week after being injured. 

Laulu totaled 91 tackles, 5.5 sacks, eight passes defensed and 12 quarterback hits in 39 games with the Raiders.

The Titans, meanwhile, are in a worst situation than the Raiders. They’re currently 1-6 and in last place in the AFC South, and their defense has given up just over 25 points a game in the last four contests, with three of those being losses. 

The Tennessee defense was just shredded by the Cleveland Browns, who got almost 500 yards of total offense on Sunday. That included over 300 yards passing from quarterback Deshaun Watson, and along with a rushing attack that averaged 6.4 yards a carry, with Quinshon Judkins rushing for 96 yards and a pair of touchdown on just 17 carries. 

Robert Saleh is a defense-first coach, so he may be hoping to develop Laulu, who was inactive on Sunday as the Raiders lost a 35-21 game to the Los Angeles Rams. The Raiders were also shredded by Rams running backs Blake Corum and Kyren Williams, who combined for almost 200 yards rushing. 

Coach Klint Kubiak is under considerable pressure to end the Raiders’ four-game losing streak, and he’s been tight-lipped so far this week about the changes he’s been making. Most of the buzz has been about the Raiders’ quarterback situation, but there are plenty of other problems to fix.