Oakland Raiders do Right by David Amerson

The Oakland Raiders have thought highly of cornerback David Amerson since his days at North Carolina State. But when they took D.J. Hayden in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft, Amerson went in the second round to the Washington Redskins.

The Amerson looked like an up-and-coming star for the Redskins until head coach Mike Shanahan was fired. And with that change of head coaches came a change in defensive coordinators. So Amerson no longer fit into what the Redskins do as they became more of a zone defense team.

So GM Reggie McKenzie, who now wants big, long corners for the Raiders bump-and-run scheme, put in a claim and got him. One thing about McKenzie is that he doesn’t play games when he finds a player. So after a great first year in the Silver and Black, he signed Amerson to an extension.

The extension is for four years and worth as much as $38 million and including almost $18 million in guarantees. So there will be no playing chicken between Amerson and the Raiders next offseason. If he plays the way I believe he will this year, this will be a bargain for the team.

With the way they’re paying guys these days, a big year from Amerson would make him worth more. But instead of waiting for that to happen, the Raiders do right by Amerson and give him the raise he deserves. He would have made only make $880,000 in 2016 under his rookie deal.

Giving him the raise now means no super-expensive negotiations later.

Way to go Reggie!