Eric Stokes
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SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - AUGUST 07: Eric Stokes #22 of the Las Vegas Raiders looks on during the NFL Preseason 2025 game between Las Vegas Raiders and Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field on August 07, 2025 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
The Las Vegas Raiders are in store for one of the most crucial offseasons in recent memory, with over $89 million in cap space and the No. 1 overall pick.
Despite all the flashy moves fans want to see the team make, one move general manager John Spytek wants to make is re-signing cornerback Eric Stokes, who joined the team last offseason on a one-year, $3.5 million deal.
“We’ve had good dialogue with Eric about coming back,” Spytek said. “We’re gonna keep working this week. I thought he played well this year. He was healthy, which was something in the past that kind of nipped him in the bud, but he played 16 games this year. Super happy with him. He competed. He did what I knew he was capable of. …I’d love to keep him around.”
Unfortunately, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and Dan Graziano, re-signing Stokes won’t be as easy as Spytek would hope.
Raiders Get Bad News on Wanting to Re-Sign Eric Stokes
According to Fowler and Graziano, executives around the league believe Stokes is a “sleeper free agent” that might do better than fans/media expect on the open market.
“Raiders cornerback Eric Stokes: Here’s another corner well-positioned; teams liked his tape last season, when he was finally healthy.”
The reason why the Raiders were able to bring Stokes in at just $3.5 million last season was because of his injury history. Stokes missed a chunk of time in 2022 and 2023, appearing in just 12 games. However, he’s proven it was just an unfortunate injury streak after missing just one game since 2024.
NFL senior news writer Kevin Patra listed Stokes as the Raiders’ “unsung hero” last season, writing, “There weren’t very many heroes — unsung or otherwise — during Vegas’ dismal three-win season. Stokes, however, had a mostly positive campaign in coverage, recording a completion percentage over expected o -8.4% while allowing a single touchdown and generating five PBUs. His 9.3 yards per catch allowed ranked in the top 11 among corners, per PFF. Among Raiders secondary defenders, Stokes led the squad in passer rating allowed (76.9), per NGS, giving up 0.6 yards per snap (tied for first lowest among all corners in the NFL, min. 200 coverage snaps).”
He was one of the lone bright spots on defense last season, and teams around the league have taken notice.
Projected Contract & Reality Regarding Stokes
Cornerback is always a position of need for numerous teams every offseason. Teams simply can never have too many CBs. The Raiders, as noted by Fowler and Graziano, aren’t the only team that likes what they see in Stokes.
ESPN’s Aaron Schatz compiled a list projecting one free-agent signing for every NFL team and pinned the New York Giants as the team that will sign Stokes in free agency:
“Cornerbacks are a tough choice in free agency because they are so inconsistent from season to season. Stokes was one of the worst cornerbacks in the league in 2024, but he transformed into one of the league’s best in 2025 with 53 total tackles and five passes defensed. It’s safe to say we don’t know what version of Stokes we’ll see in 2026. But this is a clear position of need for the Giants, who ranked 17th in yards allowed per completion last season (10.9). They can take a chance that Stokes is closer to his 2025 play.”
Schatz didn’t list a projected contract, but The Athletic’s Daniel Popper has Stokes projected to ink a two-year, $20 million deal. With the latest news, it could be an annual salary of around $13.5 million.
Regardless, the Stokes should be happy to re-sign with the Raiders, and they have the cap space to give him a nice pay raise.