Homecoming: A Los Angeles Raiders CCM (M25)

[GMAB8]

Lol, Lamarr Houston signed a smaller contract with SF than what he was offered in LA. Must've really wanted out! I'm guessing he fired his agent.

[Saltiren]

2014 NFL DRAFT RECAP

2014 NFL Draft - Los Angeles Raiders
Pick	Team	Player	Pos	Ht	Wt
1 (9)	Florida State	Elbert Kitchens	MLB	6'1"	239
2 (41)	Baylor	Alan Aultman	CB	6'2"	183
3 (77)	USF	Nat Stillwell	OLB	6'1"	235
6 (169)	J. Madison	Marco McCay	DE	6'5"	290
7 (198)	Oregon	Frank Kuca	P	6'0"	187
7 (201)	Florida A&M	Jeremy Dominque	K	5'8"	198

The L.A. Raiders' first selection at 9th overall was Florida State linebacker Elbert Kitchens. Kitchens is a strong, powerful tackler with a great understanding of the game. Coaches say his football I.Q. is on-par with seasoned veterans. He also has the ability to command defenses and is fast in his decision making, attacking gaps quickly and decisively. He has concerns about his speed, as he posted higher than a 4.60 second 40 yard dash, but that didn't scare off the Raiders from selecting a solid player who is ready to immediately step into the NFL.

In the 2nd round was lengthy cornerback prospect Alan Aultman out of Baylor. Aultman is a very tall cornerback at 6'2", just like Gus Bradley had back in Seattle. He's a strong tackler and sad good strength when jamming receivers at the line, and this can only improve as he learns the NFL game. He isn't an extremely fast cornerback, so many experts wonder if a move to safety would be in line for the former high school linebacker.

The Raiders' third pick was USF weakside linebacker Nat Stillwell. Nat is a quick sideline-to-sideline player who has speed to track down running plays from the backside and to cover tight ends and running backs when asked. His height is a concern at 6'1", and a knee injury sustained late in the year might have scouts concerned about his durability and long-term health.

The 4th round selection was traded to the Atlanta Falcons for their 3rd round draft pick in the 2015 draft. The 5th round was traded to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for Matt Flynn last season.

6th round draft choice Marco McCay is a small school standout who dominated his competition with impressive displays of speed to go along with his imposing frame, standing at 6'5". He wasn't penned as a prospect on many teams radars due to a very weak bench press of just 17 reps of 225lbs, but the Raiders took a chance here on a low-risk draft pick.

Both 7th round draft picks replaced both parting members of the special teams unit. Frank Kuca is a solid punter from the Pac-12 that has a good leg and the accuracy to consistently pin teams behind the 20. He's a guy who can be your punter for the next 10+ seasons. The Raiders' final pick Jeremy Dominque is a bit more raw, coming from a small school and standing at just 5'8". Don't be fooled though, this guy's got one heck of a leg. Accuracy problems were the main reason he wasn't recruited during high school, and it's still bothering him now. Should the Raiders be able to teach the kid to aim, he'll be hitting 60 yarders in no time.

2014 Pre-season Roster/Depth Chart

Los Angeles Raiders Depth Chart - 2014
Regular Offense
	STARTER	2ND	3RD	4TH
WR	Denarius Moore	Deon Butler	Tobias Palmer
TE	David Ausberry	Nick Kasa	Richard Gordon
LT	Jared Veldheer	Willie Smith
LG	Lance Louis	Tony Bergstrom
C	Stefen Wisniewski	Kevin Matthews
RG	Mike Brisiel	Lucas Nix
RT	Menelik Watson	Reid Fragel
WR	Rod Streater	Brice Butler
QB	Matt Flynn	Tyler Wilson	Thaddeus Lewis
FB	Marcel Reece
HB	Darren McFadden	Toby Gerhart	Taiwan Jones	Joshua Nunez
Base 4-3 Defense
	STARTER	2ND	3RD	4TH
LDE	Christo Bilukidi	Marco McCay	Mike Neal
LDT	Pat Sims	Sione Fua
RDT	Jonathan Babineaux	Stacy McGee
RDE	Shaun Phillips	Justin Trattou
WLB	Nat Stillwell	Kaelin Burnett
MLB	Elbert Kitchens	Kaluka Maiava
SLB	Sio Moore	Vic So'oto
CB	Mike Jenkins	A.J. Jefferson	Josh Thomas
SS	Jordan Babineaux	Don Carey
FS	Tyvon Branch	Jordan Bernstine
CB	D.J. Hayden	Alan Aultman
Special Teams
	STARTER	2ND	3RD	4TH
K	Jeremy Dominque
P	Frank Kuca
PR	Deon Butler
KR	Taiwan Jones

This is the depth chart heading into the first pre-season in this dynasty. I will be playing all pre-season games and practices, using gameplan calling for offense and calling all of the plays myself on defense.

Notes:
-Signed UDFA RB Joshua Nunez, a jack-of-all-trades back who is getting a chance to start his NFL career.
-Mike Neal, former Green Bay Packers defensive end was signed to compete with former 6th round pick defensive tackle Christo Bilukidi and rookie Marco McCay for the new run-stopping strong side defensive end position. This is a similar position to a 3-4 defensive end despite being played in a 4-3 front.
-Deon Butler was signed to compete for the third Wide Receiver spot, and particularly the slot position alongside return duties.
-The Hall of Fame players enshrined this year are Drew Brees, Tony Gonzalez and Charles Woodson.