Jalen Nailor
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New Las Vegas Raiders WR Jalen Nailor.
The Las Vegas Raiders have made their big free agency signing by giving former Baltimore Ravens center Tyler Linderbaum. Even with that huge signing, the team is still armed with a ton of salary cap space.
Now that the center need has been filled, the Raiders turned to one of their other biggest needs, wide receiver. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Las Vegas has agreed on a three-year, $35 million contract with former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jalen Nailor.
Nailor isn’t a huge need, as he’s been overshadowed by Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison for the majority of his career. Last season, he had 29 catches for 444, which aren’t big numbers.
However, the Raiders are clearly making a bet on upside. Nailor went to high school in Las Vegas, so it’s a bit of a homecoming for him. He first came into the NFL as a sixth-round pick of the Vikings in 2022.
He dealt with some injury issues early in his career, but has been able to stay healthy the last two seasons. The Raiders are paying him a strong salary for a wide receiver who has never caught more than 29 balls in a season. This is a big bet on upside, but general manager John Spytek must’ve seen something he liked.