The Las Vegas Raiders had the second-most salary cap space in the NFL and spent lots of it to address several roster holes ahead of the NFL draft.
After going 3-14 and securing the top selection in this year’s National Football League draft, it was clear that the Las Vegas Raiders needed to revamp its roster for the 2026 campaign.
We all know who the Raiders are selecting with the top pick and he’s scheduled to have a Top 30 visit with the team in two weeks, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. Indiana quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza is expected to land with Las Vegas and hit the ground running after the Raiders made several big free agency moves.
The most notable offensive pickup for the Raiders is former Baltimore Ravens center Tyler Linderbaum, who signed a massive three-year, $81 million contract to make him the highest-paid center in NFL history at $27 million per season. The Raiders had the worst-rated offensive line and scored just over 14 points per game (NFL-worst) a season ago, so adding the top free agent center was important for the development of Mendoza.
Las Vegas made a few other big-time moves defensively as well, signing former Green Bay Packers linebacker Quay Walker and former Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Nakobe Dean to three-year deals. While there are still some holes to be filled in the draft, Las Vegas spending lots of money to shore up other needs is a sign of a competent front office.
ESPN’s Ben Solak dissected the free agency of all 32 teams and ranked them accordingly. The Raiders ranked seventh on the list, and while the Linderbaum deal made sense for the Raiders, it impacted his rating in a negative way.
Solak loved the “double-dip” at linebacker and celebrated Las Vegas’ ability to not overpay in a deep market. He noted that Walker and Dean were teammates at Georgia and played together nicely, which should be a definite boost to team chemistry.
“The Raiders' linebacker play was unspeakably poor last season, and anything less than a total overhaul would have limited the defense,” Solak wrote Wednesday.
Solak knows Linderbaum will have a huge impact on the Raiders during this contract and all of the context checks out – money to spend, fit, rookie quarterback – but $27 million per year for a center is a head-scratcher.
“With that said, $27 million per year is an enormous leap, and it's basically all guaranteed,” wrote Solak. “This is one of the biggest 'agent win' deals of the cycle. Even with all the data considered, I simply would not have done this deal for Linderbaum were I in general manager John Spytek's shoes.”
The Raiders needed to make a move like this, whether the franchise overpaid or not. He is one of the best at his position and Las Vegas had the money to splurge on the top guy, so why not protect the future of your team?