To say the Raiders’ pass rush was poor in 2018 would be quite the understatement. As a team, Oakland recorded just 13 sacks, 17 fewer than the 31st-ranked team in the Giants. Finding a pass rush is by far the team’s most crucial need this offseason.
However, they aren’t entirely void of talent on the defensive line. The best building block is defensive tackle Maurice Hurst, a fifth-round pick in 2018. As a rookie, Hurst recorded 31 tackles, four sacks, and three pass deflections. According to Pro Football Focus, he finished as one of the top interior defensive linemen in the AFC West last season:
Hurst dealt with an ankle injury in the second half of the season, and it clearly impacted his play. Assuming he can get healthy and the team can find a suitable outside pass rush to take pressure off of him, I expect him to make a big leap next season. If the Raiders are going to take a step forward in 2019, it’s going to because of Hurst.
