"The Raiders seemingly learned their lesson from last year's disaster. They had a ton of money to spend and have spent it, mostly, on players in their mid-20s with upside: Dean's a great blitzer, Walker can really run, Nailor has flashed, Paye defends the run well, and Johnson is a versatile secondary piece who brings toughness and veteran leadership. Keeping Koonce and Stokes made sense. Even if not all of these second- and third-tier signings hit, enough of them will to provide a better baseline as the build begins."