Raider Nation is hyped right now. Jon Gruden has returned from the Monday Night Football booth to inject new life into the Oakland Raiders. Gruden is already hard at work remolding the team in his image, and many familiar faces have already been let go. Bruce Irvin was one player that the new regime kept around, but it looks like he is getting a new role. The team plans to move him to defensive end to let him focus purely on rushing the quarterback to ramp up the Raiders lack of a pass rush. This is a mistake. Irvin needs to stay just where he has played since his second season: outside linebacker.
Bruce Irvin Is Best Served at Linebacker for the Oakland Raiders
Best Fit for His Talents
Though it sounds good in theory to put Irvin back at the position he was drafted at, there was a reason he switched to linebacker in the first place. Sure, he has been the Raiders best pass-rush option behind Khalil Mack, but fans might be getting too ahead of themselves in thinking that playing defensive end would improve his game. Perhaps Raider Nation is so desperate for another recognizable, full-time pass rusher that they are crowning Irvin as an elite talent when history says otherwise about him.
Though he racked up eight sacks playing defensive end as a rookie, defenses started to figure him out. In his first four games, he recorded 4.5 of those sacks. In his final five games, however, he only managed one sack. His second season, he fell behind on the depth chart after the team signed Cliff Avril and Michael Bennett. When Ken Norton Jr., then the linebackers coach of the Seattle Seahawks, asked him to play linebacker, he ultimately felt it a more natural position. At the time, Irvin said, “I just felt like playing in more space will allow me to showcase my talents and really help my team.”
He credits Norton’s advice to switch to linebacker as “saving his career.” Did he just forget about all of that? Playing in space is much more effective for Irvin. He has solid, if not unspectacular cover skills, but works best at getting to the quarterback in surprise attacks. He matched his rookie sack total last season, showing that he still has value in his versatility. The Raiders would be best served to just leave Irvin in the spot he has played at since they signed him, especially considering the makeup of the rest of the team.
The Weak Link in the Defense
One of those reasons is the quality of the rest of the linebacking corps. Even though Oakland signed veteran linebackers Derrick Johnson and Tahir Whitehead, this group looks to be the thinnest on the team. Nicholas Morrow saw the most time of any linebacker after Irvin last year but he was an undrafted rookie. He did play surprisingly well and could continue to improve in his second season. Still, it’s become all too common a trend for rookie linebackers to take a step back in their second season for the Raiders (most recently Ben Heeney). We don’t really know how he will gel with the new coaching staff, or how much he will improve this season.
From there, another option is Marquel Lee, last year’s fifth-round pick. Lee was drafted to fill a hole at middle linebacker. He never really caught on and looked lost at times in coverage. His strength was as a run stopper, something Johnson is weaker at. His role would be best fit to rotate in at middle linebacker on obvious rushing downs and short yardage situations.
The Raiders did add another veteran in Emmanuel Lamur, who played for defensive coordinator Paul Guenther on the Cincinnati Bengals between 2012 and 2015. His experience in the system might help him get some playing time, but it will mean trouble if the Raiders are forced to rely on him. Lamur hasn’t started a game since 2012 and has a total of 31 tackles in the past three seasons. He is nothing more than a rotational player. Looking at the lack of an established third linebacker, Irvin might just have to play where he is needed most.
From Weakest to Strongest
The Raiders idea to move Irvin to defensive end is directly due to their lackluster defensive line the past few years. Mack has been a one-man wrecking show, piling up almost as many sacks in 2017 as the entire defensive line did the past two seasons combined. The team has been in the bottom quarter of the league in sacks the past two years, including finishing dead last in 2016.
This season, however, those numbers are destined to change. Oakland used the draft to grab two players who look to play a pivotal role on defense in 2018. One of those guys is defensive tackle, Maurice Hurst. Hurst was a first-round talent who fell in the draft due to a heart condition. But, he has since been medically cleared. He is already running with the starters in practice. Many are already putting him in the defensive rookie of the year conversation. Looking at these stats from Pro Football Focus, it is easy to see why:
A look at what makes @RAIDERS draft pick Maurice Hurst so special pic.twitter.com/cE2PvMEqI7
— Pro Football Focus (@PFF) April 29, 2018
While Hurst looks to add some pressure up the middle of the defense, the real key that might force Irvin to stay at linebacker is Arden Key. The Raiders took Key in the third round this year, but like Hurst, he could also be a steal. At one point, Key looked like a first-round talent. He got 21 sacks during his first two seasons at LSU. After that, things got murky, as character concerns overshadowed his talent. Then, injuries slowed him down his final two seasons. Still, there is legitimate hope that Key’s personal problems are behind him. If he can get a quick grasp of the defense, he will see the field quickly.
Putting it all Together
Although on the surface it sounds great to move Irvin to defensive end, a closer look reveals that he should just stay put right where he is. He originally moved to linebacker for a reason, because he does not consistently win as a pure pass rusher, works better in space, and can contribute in coverage. Besides that, Oakland might need him at linebacker, since that position group is the thinnest of the entire defense. Finally, with the added talent on the defensive line, Irvin might see himself fall behind on the depth chart in favor of better talent just like in Seattle.
