Silver And Black Pride
Looking at quarterback, guard, wide receiver, linebacker, running back, cornerback and safety
Free agency is steadily approaching as the franchise tag window opened this week. That means the Las Vegas Raiders’ options for addressing their needs will likely be dwindling soon. So, let’s take a look at one name to keep tabs on at each position of need who could get slapped with the one-year tender by their current clubs, while also exploring the franchise tag news that has already been reported as of Thursday, Feb. 20.
According to Silver and Black Pride’s recent poll, fans are worried about the Raiders signing Darnold. While that’s fair, it’s also hard to argue that the seven-year pro isn’t one of Las Vegas’ best options at addressing the most important position of need.
If you’re in favor of going after Darnold, the good news is ESPN’s Kevin Seifert said the Vikings likely won’t tag the quarterback.
“Using the tag on quarterback Sam Darnold would be an expensive way of ensuring his return while avoiding a longer-term commitment that would hinder J.J. McCarthy’s eventual ascension,” Seifert wrote on Feb. 17. “It could also be a way to elicit additional value by way of a trade, but that would require a knowledge that multiple teams would be willing to bid. In the end, the Vikings seem more likely to let Darnold sign elsewhere and preserve their tag for a player such as cornerback Byron Murphy Jr., who had a career-high six interceptions in 2024 and is hitting his prime at age 27. If nothing else, it would give the Vikings time to sign Murphy to a longer-term deal while keeping him off the market.”
According to The Athletic’s Nate Taylor, the Chiefs aren’t expected to tag Trey Smith who is arguably the best guard on the open market. That’s good news for the Raiders since the offensive line could use some help on the interior and, at the least, the odds of Smith leaving the division increase.
So, the other guard to keep an eye on is Daniels out of Pittsburgh. Only 27 years old, he’s still young and a quality player who signed a $26.5 million contract with the Steelers three years ago. Daniels was playing well at the beginning of last season but tore an Achilles in Week 4. That could lead Pitt to use the one-year tender on him to buy another season and see how he performs off the injury before negotiating a long-term contract.
NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported that the Bengals are likely to tag Tee Higgins, widely considered the top free-agent wide receiver this offseason. With that, it wouldn’t be surprising to see John Spytek go back to his roots and target another wideout.
Godwin has been productive throughout his eight-year career with nearly 7,300 yards and 39 touchdowns and is on the right side of 30. However, he is coming off a dislocated...
