Thursday the Raiders previous tally of 12 outside free agents added went down to 11.
In a stunning development, their deal with former Saints cornerback Eli Apple fell through. This not only means the Raiders now won’t be paying the $6 million they were expected to be paying Apple, but they are once again in the market for a cornerback.
What’s interesting is there is still some quality cornerback talent out there. Here are a few who could be good additions to replace Apple.
1. Dre Kirkpatrick (30)
The former 17th overall pick became a cap casualty by the Bengals last week. The best seasons of his career were the four seasons in which Paul Guenther was the Bengals’ defensive coordinator.
The 30-year-old suffered an injury that ended his 2019 season after six games, but prior to that, he was a reliable starting corner. He has 10 career interceptions and 65 pass breakups in 67 starts.
2. Prince Amukamara (31)
The former 19th overall pick has been a quality cornerback in the NFL for nearly a decade. He has had double-digit pass breakups in each of the past two seasons as the full-time starter for the Chicago Bears.
He was probably a top-five free agent when it opened in mid-March. With most of the big names scooped up, many consider Amukamara to be the top outside cornerback still out there.
3. Bashaud Breeland (28)
Fresh off his interception in the Super Bowl as a starting cornerback for the Chiefs, Breeland probably hoped he would have received more interest than this. He probably should have been signed by now. After all, he’s been a full time starting cornerback every season of his career and is still just 28 years old.
Breeland also averages two interceptions per season and has never had a season without at least one. He has 72 career pass breakups as well.
4. Daryl Worley (25)
Don’t forget this guy. He’s still out there. The Raiders could do a lot worse than to bring Worley back into the fold. He tied for second on the team with eight pass breakups and his 58 combined tackles were fourth on the team.
Despite his aggressiveness in coverage, he had just two pass interference penalties last season. And that was it. No holdings and no illegal contact.
