It would be easy to write off 2024 as a wasted season for the Las Vegas Raiders.
Their 4-12 record leaves them on the outside looking in for the top quarterback prospects. They will have serious questions in terms of roster construction and coaching this offseason.
While the season left plenty to be desired, it was also not a total bust. General manager Tom Telesco’s first draft class has netted the Raiders three or four long-term starters, including Pro Bowl tight end Brock Bowers.
Even more impressive has been the defense rounding into form to close out the year. Many players have been asked to step up in the wake of injuries, and some have managed to deliver.
Nowhere has the "next man up" mentality been more beneficial than on the defensive line, featuring two young players who have more than rose to the occasion.
With edge-rusher Malcolm Koonce missing the season and defensive linemen Christian Wilkins and Maxx Crosby going down midseason, the Raiders were desperate for production from their depth players.
Enter Tyree Wilson and K’Lavon Chaisson, a pair of former first-round picks who have been desperate to shed the bust labels given to them by fans and pundits alike.
Wilson, who the Raiders spent the seventh overall pick on in 2023, struggled to get out of the starting blocks in his rookie season due to foot surgery. With the early success of Jalen Carter, who was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles two picks later, Raiders fans feared they had already landed on another bust.
Instead, this season has saw marked improvement from Wilson, who has turned his athletic gifts into tangible NFL production in his second year.
In 2024, Wilson has 26 tackles, six tackles for loss, four-and-a-half sacks and 36 quarterback pressures. By comparison, 2023 saw Wilson have 23 tackles, two tackles for loss, three-and-a-half sacks and 24 pressures.
That level of improvement is great to see from Wilson, who is making his way into opposing backfields far more consistently this season and factoring heavily into the recent success of the Raiders’ defense.
While the Raiders have been waiting for this type of development from Wilson, Chaisson has emerged as one of the unexpected surprises of the year.
A former first-round pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2020, Chaisson only managed three sacks in three seasons with the team and was allowed to enter free agency when his four-year rookie contract expired.
After being released by the Carolina Panthers before the season started, he was picked up by the Raiders and stashed on the practice squad to begin the year. When injuries took hold, Chaisson was signed to the active roster and has become a fixture ever since.
In one season with the Raiders, Chaisson has already surpassed his sack total with the Jaguars with five on the year. This includes four sacks within a stretch of five games, including two on Patrick Mahomes against the Kansas City Chiefs and one on Mac Jones against his former team.
Chaisson has also reached career-high numbers in other statistical categories, having eight quarterback hits, 31 tackles and seven tackles for loss.
Chaisson has made the most of his new lease on NFL life, and he will likely parlay his one-year flier into a healthy raise next season, whether it be with the Raiders or another team.
Assuming the Raiders re-sign Chaisson and Crosby returns healthy from ankle surgery in 2025, the team suddenly boasts one of the deepest defensive line rotations in the NFL. In an AFC West featuring Mahomes, Justin Herbert and Bo Nix, that is essential towards pushing the Raiders back to relevance.
This final stretch of the season has seen a fair number of positives emerge for the Raiders, and Wilson and Chaisson’s play has been at the tip of the spear.
