Why it’s ok the Oakland Raiders didn’t upgrade at MLB
Many who follow the Oakland Raiders closely felt that middle linebacker was one of the biggest needs heading into this offseason. Last year’s week one starter, Curtis Lofton, has since been cut after a terrible one year stint with the Silver and Black. The presumptive starter on the roster would be Ben Heeney, who looked decent in a handful of starts he received at the end of last year.
While Heeney has quickly become a fan and coach favorite for how hard he works, there are still areas of his game that need to improve. He can have problems getting off of blocks and his coverage skills leave a lot to be desired. He is by no means a liability the way that Lofton was in coverage, but he also gave up his fair share of catches in 2015 as well.
Heeney could develop into a starting caliber middle linebacker but because this is the NFL and nothing is guaranteed, many thought the Raiders should go after a middle linebacker to upgrade the unit and at least give Heeney someone to compete with. The Raiders didn’t do that and here’s a big reason why:
Scheme versatility.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, it’s that word again. Versatility. But this time in reference to the defensive scheme rather than individual players. Last season, the Raiders showed both 4-3 and 3-4 looks while also deploying a 5-2 at times. Yup, a 5-2 when they really wanted to bring the heat. Combine the scheme versatility of the Raiders defense with the fact that defenses often spend much of their time in the nickel or dime formations these days and suddenly, you can hide a deficiency at middle linebacker.
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Some of the formations the Raiders will be using won’t call for a middle linebacker, or at least not one who fits the traditional role. For example, in a nickel package you might have a position named MLB but because the offense is in a passing formation, that player will more likely be using coverage or rush skills rather than run stopping skills. Because of this, the Raiders can plug in guys like Neiron Ball, who are not natural inside backers but who can play that role in certain packages.
In fact, this very well could be the reason that the one player with experience at middle linebacker that the Raiders added this offseason isn’t really a true middle linebacker. Cory James started his college career as a pass rushing outside linebacker before changing schemes and moving inside. Seems like an excellent candidate to be subbed in for certain packages.
Every NFL team is going to enter the year with holes on their roster. There is no such thing as a completed NFL team, everyone is constantly trying to grow and get better. The Raiders upgraded a whole lot of areas this offseason and if they were going to “neglect” any spot, they chose wisely with middle linebacker.
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