The Oakland Raiders have been one of the busiest teams in the offseason this year while reworking their roster from last season and the team made another big move recently, waiving former first round draft pick Rolando McClain after a rough campaign and after he signed with the Baltimore Ravens he was arrested again in Alabama.
According to ESPN.com, the Raiders released McClain after drafting him with the number eight overall pick in the 2010 draft and now will move on from another high selection after cutting both Michael Huff and Darrius Heyward Bey this offseason. The team not has a number of areas to address in free agency and the draft, including at linebacker and a could options could be with veteran Brian Urlacher and Karlos Dansby.
Both Urlacher and Dansby are on the market and have so far not commanded much attention, meaning that the Ravens could possibly sign them on the cheap, something they would need after dealing with a salary cap situation this offseason. The team will have more room in the future after making veteran cuts, but for the immediate season they do not have much flexibility. General manager Reggie McKenzie signed both Nick Roach and Kevin Burnett in the offseason to make up for the loss, but after releasing McClain, the team will need some more depth as well.
The Ravens may want to cut ties after realizing that McClain never will stay out of trouble and they could go after veterans like Karlos Dansby and Brian Urlacher instead so that they can add depth to replace Dannell Ellerbe and Ray Lewis.
McClain looked to be a star in the making after coming out of Alabama, but some off the field issues and inconsistent play on the field was his undoing. He was arrested twice in his home town after once pointing a gun at someone and also giving a false name to a police officer and he also was suspended last season for conduct detrimental to the team.
McClain's best year with the team came in 2011 when he had 99 tackles and five sacks while playing in 14 games and last season he was inconsistent while making 62 tackles and playing in about half of the teams snaps. He signed a large $40 million contract as a rookie, but now is another high draft pick cut loose by the Raiders. The team gave his agent the option of seeking a trade, but after no takers stepped up, the Raiders cut him and put him on waivers.
The team could look for cheap free agent options like Urlacher, who the Bears wanted to sign for a one-year $2 million deal, as well as someone like Dansby, who led the Dolphins in tackles last season with 134 while playing in all 16 games. Dansby has been a durable player and he has played in all 16 games in all but one of the past five seasons.
The Raiders went just 4-12 last season and need to shore up their defense to have a chance in the AFC West with the Broncos. The team has made a number of moves to change things up by bringing in Flynn and they will need to add a solid draft to help turn things around next year. The team will be players in 2014 with $79 million of cap room, but that's still another year away,