Although the Las Vegas Raiders were active early in this past free agency, they made other smart moves later in the process. One of those was the addition of cornerback Prince Amukamara.
Other than maybe sophomore Trayvon Mullen, there wasn’t a corner the Raiders could rely on last season. For that reason, they invested heavily in the position in both the 2020 NFL Draft and free agency. After selecting Damon Arnette and Amik Robertson, it seemed like Las Vegas had finished making changes at the position. However, they didn’t stop there and later added Amukamara.
Even though Amukamara has never been elite at the position, he can hold his own and still be effective. Furthermore, he can serve as a mentor to the rest of the Raiders corners, as most of them are in either their first or second season in the league.
Based on how the offseason is unfolding, it would not be surprising to see Amukamara start the opposite of Mullen, even if he eventually cedes his job to Arnette once he’s ready.
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Solid, Under-the-Radar Signing For The Raiders
In a recent article, Ben Linsey of Pro Football Focus graded Amukamara as the fifth-best man-coverage corner. He thinks it’s an underrated signing, and despite not being the best at what he does, the corner offers consistency.
The signing of Amukamara by Las Vegas is a good one that almost no one is talking about. Amukamara isn’t flashy and he’s not going to shut down one half of the field, but he’s a solid veteran with a track record of consistent play. With the uncertainty and youth that the Raiders have at the cornerback position, they needed someone like him.
Amukamara didn’t see many coverage snaps in 2019. Nonetheless, he was solid when the time came to take the field. Out of his 566 snaps in coverage, only 166 were “man,” which almost left him out of PFF’s ranking (corners needed at least 150 to qualify).
Amukamara just qualified for this list with 166 man-coverage snaps in 2019, but he wasn’t tested often in man and limited production well enough when he was to earn a top-five spot on this list. I would expect him to start outside in Paul Guenther’s defense, even with young guys like Trayvon Mullen and Damon Arnette in the fold.
Another thing that makes Amukama’s addition a superb deal is the modest cost of the transaction. The Raiders will pay the veteran $887,500 to play in 2020, which ranks 99 out of 319 corners.
If Amukamara doesn’t pan out with the Raiders, they can just move on. On the other hand, if the veteran helps them solidify their secondary, he will do so at a bargain price.
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Top Photo: Rick Scuteri/Associated Press
