The Las Vegas Raiders are making prudent use of their budget.
Before the season begins, the Las Vegas Raiders must fill a number of roster gaps. Tom Telesco, general manager, has made certain financial decisions, but he did it sensibly. The Raiders’ spending thus far has been appropriate, based on the numbers.
According to Mike Moraitis of Sporting News, the Raiders are in the center of the NFL in terms of the overall amount of contract money awarded this offseason between extensions and free agency. “The Las Vegas Raiders are right in the middle of their peers when it comes to spending during the 2024 NFL offseason,” wrote Moraitis.
Moraitis pointed out that the Raiders’ offseason expenditures were primarily attributed to one transaction: the acquisition of Christian Wilkins, a defensive tackle. Nevertheless, the Raiders didn’t overpay for Wilkins despite the sum they gave him, and they remain in a strong financial position to add other players later in the offseason.
According to Spotrac, the Raiders have awarded $170.8 million in total contract value between free-agent signings and extensions, according to Moraitis. “In the NFL, that is the fifteenth-highest total.” Naturally, a sizable portion of that went to Christian Wilkins, a defensive lineman, who signed a huge four-year, $110 million contract to significantly strengthen Las Vegas’ front office.”
Wilkins cost the Raiders a substantial amount of money, and in exchange, they lost a valuable component of their offensive. Regaining center Andre James was a success for the group, particularly for Aidan O’Connell. The fact that they were able to acquire James for such a reasonable sum is evidence of Telesco’s high caliber of work.
The center Andre James, who demanded a fairly reasonable three-year, $24 million agreement to keep him off the open market, cost the Raiders a fair amount of money as well, according to Moraitis. The Raiders still have money to work with despite their current spending. Additionally, according to Spotrac, Las Vegas has the ninth-most top-51 cap space in the NBA with $25.2 million.
However, it should be noted that it does not include the money required to sign the upcoming draft class from Las Vegas. When accounting for cap space, Over the Cap estimates that the Raiders’ group will cost roughly $4.5 million in 2024, leaving Las Vegas with about $20.7 million.
If the Raiders want to climb out of the hole left by the previous coaching staff, they will need to continue to make prudent free agency decisions while they rebuild what was a badly constructed squad