With The First Pick
Fansided

Oakland Raiders Get ILB Their Defense Needed

By Carl Cockerham

Sep 20, 2015; Landover, MD, USA; Washington Redskins inside linebacker Perry Riley (56) onto the field prior to the Redskins
Sep 20, 2015; Landover, MD, USA; Washington Redskins inside linebacker Perry Riley (56) onto the field prior to the Redskins /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
7 of 8
Next
Nov 23, 2014; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Washington Redskins inside linebacker Perry Riley (56) leaps over free safety Trenton Robinson (34) after Robinson made a tackle against the San Francisco 49ers in the first quarter at Levi
Nov 23, 2014; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Washington Redskins inside linebacker Perry Riley (56) leaps over free safety Trenton Robinson (34) after Robinson made a tackle against the San Francisco 49ers in the first quarter at Levi /

Why He wasn’t on a Team

If Perry is so good, why wasn’t he on a team, right?

Well, this is the salary-cap era so when you can find a passable option for much less money you do. Riley is a really good player that was still growing but he was no Ray Lewis. When the injury bug flew up and bit him in last year, the Redskins signed Mason Foster off the street.

Foster just got cut by the Chicago Bears himself so went to Washington on a mission. And since he played well, the Redskins decided to keep him around. Meanwhile, Riley tried to come back to soon last year and ended up needing surgery on his foot.

He missed the entire offseason and started training camp on the PUP list. And by the time he came back off the PUP list, the Redskins figured they might as well stay with Foster. The Redskins saved $4 million on the salary cap by cutting Riley.

Teams aren’t going to claim an ILB that’s making that kind of money and coming off an injury. Then as the free agent offers started to come, he wanted to take his time on a move. And he chose the Raiders because he saw something in the team and childhood friend Bruce Irvin.

Home/Las Vegas Raiders