The Raiders made their first splash of the legal-tampering period Wednesday by making two moves nearly simultaneously. First up was a major signing of veteran EDGE Chandler Jones to a reported three-year, $51 million contract. In seemingly a corresponding move that was announced within minutes of the Jones signing, multiple sources reported that the Raiders had agreed to terms to trade DE Yannick Ngakoue to the Indianapolis Colts for CB Rock Ya-Sin.
With the addition of Jones, the McDaniels-Ziegler Raiders regime has now made a second move in solidifying the teams’ pass-rush after extending DE Maxx Crosby on March 11. Jones, 32, has spent the last six years with the Arizona Cardinals and is coming off a 10.5 sack season. Ngakoue ends his Raiders career after just one season in Las Vegas in which he accumulated 10 sacks.
Rock Ya-Sin, 25, was drafted 34th overall by the Colts in 2019 and put a strong foot forward in his third season with the team. Ya-Sin joins a cornerback group that was led last season by the play of veteran CB Casey Hayward Jr. (who remains a free agent) and breakout rookie Nate Hobbs. Starting CB Trayvon Mullen Jr. appeared in only five games in 2021 due to injury.
The Raiders had been relatively quiet up to this point during free agency but now have added two strong pieces on the defensive side of the ball with plenty of time to continue building to a roster that went 10-7 in the regular season and made the playoffs despite seemingly insurmountable odds.
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