Raiders Predicted to Sign $24 Million Cornerback To Upgrade Lagging Pass Defense

The Las Vegas Raiders pass coverage issues were not the only reason that the Silver and Black finished 2024 at 4-13, their worst record since a 3-13 season in 2014 a decade earlier. But the lack of high-level cornerback play was definitely one of the reasons.

The Raiders allowed 3,676 yards in the air to opposing receivers, placing them a sub-mediocre 18th in the NFL. They also allowed 29 passing touchdowns, more than all but four teams.

Specifically against wide receivers, the pass defense was even more of a problem. The Raiders ranked 23rd in the league, giving up 2,414 yards to opposing wideouts.

Pete Carroll Must Address Pass Coverage

For a head coach like the Raiders’ newly installed Pete Carroll with a longstanding reputation as a defensive specialist, those results can only be cause for concern. Carroll is future Hall of Famer who was the winningest coach in Seattle Seahawks history, and one of only three coaches to win both a Super Bowl and a college football national championship. (The others are Barry Switzer of Oklahoma and the Dallas Cowboys, and Jimmy Johnson who did it with Miami and the Cowboys as well.)

At least in part with the influence of new Raiders minority shareholder Tom Brady — another future Hall of Famer who also happens to be the winningest quarterback of all time — Carroll was hired to oversee what the Raiders hope and expect will be an accelerated rebuild, restoring the team to its status as a Super Bowl contender.

That was the team’s identity in the late 1970s and early ’80s, when the Oakland Raiders won two championships, in 1976 and 1980, and a third two years into the franchise’s 13-year Los Angeles period, in 1983.

To help rebuild the cornerback position, which was held down last season primarily by 2022 New England Patriots fourth round pick Jack Jones, Carroll and newly hired general manager John Spytek selected Iowa State cornerback Darien Porter in the third round of last week’s 2025 NFL draft.

While the Porter pick was widely hailed, and Porter described by one commentator as “a true ‘Pete Carroll cornerback,’” the athletic and speedy 24-year-old is a converted wide receiver with only one year of college experience out six on the defensive side of the ball, and who played mostly on special teams in the first years of his collegiate career.

Veteran Free Agent Could Mentor Porter in New Role

How long Porter will require to adjust to regular reps at corner in the NFL remains to be seen. That’s why Pro Football Focus looks for the Raiders to grab one of the better remaining cornerbacks on the free agent market — former Cincinnati Bengal Mike Hilton. The 31-year-old, eight-year veteran who was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted free agent in 2017, Hilton would also provide Porter with an experienced mentor.

“While the sky is the limit long term for Porter, it’s worth noting he is inexperienced and will need time to transition to the NFL level. A veteran presence in the secondary — something free agent Mike Hilton brings — would be a welcome addition to the team. Hilton has been one of the best slot defenders in the NFL over the past decade,” wrote PFF scribe Ryan Smith on Friday.

Smith also noted that Hilton has won a PFF pass coverage grade of 70 or greater — not elite but well above average — in six of his eight seasons, and so would “provide an immediate upgrade for the Raiders.”

Hilton just completed a four-year, $24 million contract with the Bengals, so he would also provide a financially manageable solution while Carroll and the Raiders take time to get Porter broken in to his new position.