This week the Raiders made a decisive move to bolster the linebacking corps with the signing of former Bengals linebacker Germaine Pratt.
Pratt is coming off a career-best 143-tackle season in Cincinnati, and when the Bengals cut him, the Raiders scooped him up.
Though the Raiders needed some depth at linebacker, it was a bit of a surprise that they signed a middle linebacker to the biggest contract for a linebacker on this team after having added Elandon Roberts to play that spot this offseason.
They also added Devin White to play outside linebacker. Roberts addressed the media after Tuesday's practice and White after Wednesday's practice. Then Pratt is signed which would figure to put one of their jobs in jeopardy.
According to Pete Carroll, however, they have plans for all three. Including, potentially, on the field together.
“He’s a really hard-nosed kid, tough kid, played a lot of football, really healthy, has played all the positions to give us flexibility that can really help us," Carroll said of Pratt. "We’ve been really pleased with Elandon [Roberts], he did a great job taking over the leadership position and Devin [White] has done a really nice job too. Put these three guys together when they’re on the field at the same time, that’s a loaded up group. They’re all tough, they’re all physical, they’re all downhill players which is the style that we love to play with. So, I was really pleased that [GM] Johnny [Spytek] was able to get that done.”
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Thursday was the final day of Raiders minicamp, so Pratt will have the next six weeks to learn the Raiders' defense and get up to speed with his new teammates. Though, his time on the field with them in an organized environment will have to wait until late July. That's when we'll get our first look at what the Raiders plans are for him and the other linebackers, which is to say, when they go into nickel defense, who comes off the field?
