Could Forgotten 24-Year-Old Be the Raiders’ Answer at Linebacker?

The Raiders were expected to address their need at linebacker in the draft, but for reasons unknown, they didn’t take a linebacker until the sixth round when they added Minnesota’s Cody Lindenberg with the 222nd pick.

On the Vegas Nation Podcast last week, Las Vegas Review-Journal beat writer Vinny Bonsignore discussed the linebacker position in Las Vegas and offered an early prediction on their depth chart at linebacker.

“They do have their two starters, Landon Roberts and Devin White,” Bonsignore said. “I would expect that this is a Raiders team that’s going to play two linebackers and often one linebacker, because of the way everything is set up, they’re going to bring in a third safety, you’ll see that a lot.”

But is there a forgotten player that could factor into the mix when OTAs get underway at the end of the month?

Rookie linebacker Amari Gainer went undrafted in 2024 and signed with the Raiders as an unrestricted free agent. Last year, he was one of the more exciting players in the preseason. He played 119 snaps in the 2024 preseason and recorded Pro Football Focus game grades of 90.6, 75.5 and 59.2. He excelled in coverage and led the team in preseason tackles with 17.

Prior to the start of the regular season, former head coach Antonio Pierce spoke highly of Gainer.

“I think the best thing that happened for him was that last game,” Pierce said. “He went out there and played 90-plus snaps. 70-plus on defense and another 15 or so on special teams. And all you saw throughout the game, and we’ve been seeing it all preseason, is a guy just getting better and better. But more importantly, somebody that just was playing his heart out. And it meant something to him.”

“He’s put himself in position, not just at linebacker, but on special teams, to be one of the core guys for us. There’s still some development there at the linebacker position that will take place over the course of the season, but he gives us a lot of flexibility because of what he’s able to do both on the line of scrimmage, off the ball linebacker and special teams.”

Gainer only got on the field for 12 defensive plays last year – mostly because Robert Spillane didn’t share many snaps in 2024.

But the 6-3, 236-pound linebacker might be someone to keep an eye on this year. A video surfaced this week showing one of Gainer’s offseason workouts and he looks like a player that’s working hard to see the field more in 2025.

Obviously, a workout video isn’t worth a lot, but it’s worth noting that Pierce kept Gainer on the 53-man roster last year. As a former linebacker himself, there was something Pierce liked about Gainer, and it will be interesting to see if he can have a breakthrough year in his second NFL season.