Raiders make surprising roster move

Jul 10, 2019; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Miami Dolphins player Kenyan Drake arrives on the red carpet at Microsoft Theatre. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports

The Las Vegas Raiders are making a surprising roster move.

The Raiders are going to cut Kenyan Drake, who was entering his second season with the team. Drake had 254 rushing yards and 2 rushing touchdowns last season. He added 30 catches for 291 yards and also returned several kicks.

The versatile 28-year-old running back signed a 2-year, $11 million deal with the Raiders last year. He was guaranteed $8.5 million at signing and will make $2.5 million this season thanks to his deal.

Kenyan Drake got $5.5 million in the spring from the #Raiders and is owed $2.5 million guaranteed this season (minus what his next team pays him). But that was money the previous regime negotiated. New regime decided to move on.

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) August 22, 2022

Drake was signed by the previous Raiders regime. The new regime of Josh McDaniels and Dave Ziegler drafted Zamir White in the fourth round, signaling that Drake might be expendable.

The Raiders may have leaked their plans to cut Drake in hopes of trying to trade him first.

The Raiders cutting him is a surprise based on how much money they gave him last year. For him to get so much money guaranteed and then be 1-and-done is pretty shocking. But Drake was coming off a big 2020 season where he rushed for 955 yards and 10 touchdowns for Arizona, indicating the Raiders were expecting similar production when they signed him.