It has been a few seasons since Jon Gruden left the Las Vegas Raiders but as recently as last season, plenty of the players he drafted were still playing key roles for the team. This offseason, there's a good chance that only a few players from the Gruden era will still be in Las Vegas.
Even before free agency, the team is moving on from one of his key starters. According to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, the Raiders have plans to release center Andre James at the start of the new league year. He joined the team as an undrafted free agent in 2019 and Gruden eventually elevated him to the starting center role.
The results were a bit mixed and his poor play in 2024 led to him being benched in favor of Jackson Powers-Johnson. Now that James is gone, it would appear that Powers-Johnson will be the starting center going forward.
James will now join former Gruden players like Nate Hobbs, Tre'von Moehrig, Malcolm Koonce and Divine Deablo in free agency. If none of those players get re-signed, Maxx Crosby, AJ Cole, Daniel Carlson and Kolton Miller would be the only impact players from Gruden's tenure to still be on the roster.
Considering the Raiders have only had three drafts since Gruden resigned, this is just a further testament to how poorly the coach drafted during his second tenure with the Silver and Black.
Related: Jalen Ramsey Has Strong Words for Maxx Crosby Following Raiders News
Related: Raiders Signing 3-Time All-Pro WR Is 'Almost a Certainty'
Copyright 2025 Athlon Sports. All rights reserved.
This story was originally published March 7, 2025 at 5:09 PM.