Silver And Black Pride
The Las Vegas Raiders traded a 6th rounder in the 2026 NFL draft to the Buffalo Bills for former top nickel cornerback Taron Johnson & a 7th rounder. Johnson was originally slated to be released by the Bills, but Las Vegas swooped in to acquire him. The veteran cornerback has 2 years, 18.6 million remaining on his contract, that runs in 2026 & 2027. Johnson, who turned 30 earlier this year, only has 1.17 million of guaranteed money remaining on his 18.6 million contract. As a result of the extremely low guaranteed salary, Johnson has been holding out of OTA’s and voluntary workouts for the Raiders, which as a result has created some scenarios for Las Vegas when it comes to their nickel position, which is a key area on the defense for DC Rob Leonard.
Johnson is coming off two down seasons, though he’s remained as a quality nickel defender with good run defense skills, strong coverage in the intermediate zones, and his biggest concerns have come with diminishing ball skills & lack of long speed. Johnson was once viewed as the best nickel cornerback in the NFL, and the veteran is looking for a bounce-back season. The Raiders have struggled to find consistent talent in their nickel position since letting Nate Hobbs walk roughly two seasons ago, and Hobbs has since landed with the 49ers after being released by Green Bay. In that time, Las Vegas has utilized Darnay Holmes, Greedy Vance, Jeremy Chinn, and others as a nickel cornerback role, and none have been close to the level that Taron Johnson would provide for Las Vegas in 2026. While I highly doubt that Johnson never plays a snap for Las Vegas, given the time and the Raiders seemingly lack of rush to add extra guaranteed money to Johnson’s deal, the Raiders will be no doubt exploring other options in their nickel position. Should they decide to release Johnson, Las Vegas will save 6.3 million in cap space for 2026 & 10 million in 2027. As a veteran cornerback, who has no contract safety in 2027, it’s not a hard reason to see why Johnson is looking for more money.
Taron Johnson
The clear cut option, Johnson needs to have the guaranteed money and contract situation resolved, but assuming he does he’ll start in the slot and this entire post may be for not. He’s in need of a bounce-back season, but a shift to the Raiders secondary which relies heavily on zone with a good trigger, run defense, and highly aggressive nature could do him a wonder.
Treydan Stukes
Stukes, the Raiders 2nd round pick in 2026, has seen a large part of his career in the nickel position, though Las Vegas drafted him with the intention to move Stukes back to a free safety position where he’s naturally a good fit. Stukes has good range, high end IQ, and exceptional ball skills which paired in the open field allow for him to be a potential high...
