NFL: Free agency fits for the top 10 teams in terms of cap space

#7. Oakland Raiders – Brandon Graham

As the wise Jon Gruden once said – good pass rushers are hard to find. The Raiders have three first-round picks in this upcoming draft and they will probably look for an impact defender with that fourth overall pick, and likely with one of the two in the 20s. But they will still look to find somebody in free agency, who is proven at providing pressure on the opposing quarterback.

With this class of edge rushers available, there are several options for Gruden and his new general manager, Mike Mayock, but I think former Eagle Brandon Graham makes a lot of sense here. Graham is one of those guys that is constantly flying under the radar because he never quite puts up those big sack numbers like some other players do, but he is one of the premiere defensive linemen in the entire league.

When you go into less mainstream stats you can see than he has averaged 71 pressures and 13 tackles for loss over the last three years. He is a disruptive force in the running and passing game with the flexibility to slide inside on third downs. The sacks aren’t always there because he primarily rushed the passer off the left side, which led to quarterbacks being forced off the spot and one of his teammates cleaning up. With Mayock being on that Raiders ship now and diving into the tape, I could see some value in an asset like Graham despite his age of 31 years.

The entire Oakland defense combined for a microscopic 13 sacks last season, which was less than half of the second-worst team in that department. Even with young talents in Arden Key and Maurice Hurst looking to emerge, they need that instant difference-maker and Graham is a guy who will get those troops ready. He just looks like a Gruden guy.