Raiders get two players that head coach Klint Kubiak absolutely needs to get the most out of his offense in Year 1
The Raiders got their fullback and a receiver that knows Kubiak’s offense.
The Las Vegas Raiders have been big spenders during free agency. However, almost all of their moves were made on Monday and finalized on Wednesday. Between Monday and Wednesday, the Raiders didn’t make any moves, as they were trying to handle the Maxx Crosby situation.
On Thursday, though, Vegas signed two players, both of whom Kubiak needs for his offense. Thursday afternoon, Vegas signed former Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Dareke Young, who also played in the return game. And they also signed former Seattle Seahawks fullback Connor Heyward, whom Kubiak likes to use fullbacks in his offense. The compensation on both deals has not yet been fully released.
With Young, Kubiak is getting a wide receiver who just ran his offense, and did it well, all things considered. On three targets, Young had two catches for 48 yards. He had ten kick returns for 322 total yards, with a 60-yard return under his belt as well. Young will likely fight for that kick return spot in training camp.
As for Heyward, I spoke with A to Z Pittsburgh’s Rob Gregson to get a better sense of what he will bring to the Raiders.
Who is fullback Connor Heyward?
Connor Heyward was the last player from the 2022 draft class to leave the Steelers, but the former sixth-round pick is currently the only member of the class to have received a multi-year, second contract. Lost a little bit as the younger brother of team captain Cam Heyward, Connor is a fullback/TE hybrid with a unique skill set. Pittsburgh would often deploy him as a move tight end, letting him show his strong hands in space.
Where he really made his money, however, was when the Steelers ran their version of the tush push. Heyward would get under center and go to work as Pittsburgh’s version of Jalen Hurts or Josh Allen, even escaping out to the perimeter at times. He has some real utilization in the right scheme, and I trust Kubiak to deploy him appropriately.
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The Raiders got their guy.
