Getty Former Las Vegas Raiders WR Willie Snead.
Former Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Willie Snead spent the last two years with the San Francisco 49ers but is on the move again. The Miami Dolphins announced July 31 that they’ve signed Snead to the roster.
Roster Moves | We have signed WR Willie Snead IV and waived DT Mario Kendricks.
Snead’s career got off to a fast start with the New Orleans Saints. He had 1,879 combined receiving yards in his first two years but hasn’t been able to match that production. He’s bounced around the NFL quite a bit and the Dolphins are an interesting landing spot.
The team had the No. 1 offense in the NFL last season and threw for more passing yards than any other team. Snead spent the last two years in a high-powered 49ers offense and should be a good fit in Miami. Head coach Mike McDaniel was with San Francisco before going to the Dolphins.
The fact that he knows the offense well could give him a good shot to make the active roster due to his familiarity with the type of offense.
Las Vegas Raiders May Lack Depth at WR
The Raiders appeared to have a very good wide receiver corps heading into training camp. Tre Tucker looked very good in OTAs and Michael Gallup would’ve been a good third or fourth wide receiver.
However, with the recent retirement of Gallup, the Raiders now find themselves thin at the position, especially with Tucker now struggling in training camp, according to The Athletic’s Vic Tafur.
“The second-year receiver seemingly has at least a drop a day,” Tafur wrote in a July 31 column. “Some, like one pass over the middle Wednesday, was a little behind him, but getting two hands on the ball has not been enough to secure catches for him. He struggled with that at the start of last season, got better and coach Antonio Pierce praised his offseason work but … though his speed is a game changer, his hands have been an issue at camp.
“Tucker is the No. 3 receiver behind Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers, and there is a considerable gap behind him on the depth chart. Michael Gallup retired last week and Jalen Guyton is dinged up. Though Kristian Wilkerson and DJ Turner have had nice camps, they are fighting for a roster spot, not Tucker’s targets. (Keelan Doss had another one of the really bad drops Wednesday.)”
Tucker’s hands were an issue last season and it appears they continue to be. His speed is elite but if he can’t hold onto the ball, the Raiders may need to strongly consider adding more wide receiver talent.
TEs Could Make WR Depth Less of an Issue
Luckily for the Raiders, they may not need more than three wide receivers to make much of an impact thanks to their abundance of tight end talent. Former second-round pick Michael Mayer is having a strong camp and rookie Brock Bowers has been very impressive.
“Brock shows up every single day and does all the little things,” running back Ameer Abdullah said during his July 31 media availability.
Mayer and Bowers are going to see the ball a lot and there are only so many passes to go around. The Raiders don’t need to panic too much about not having great depth at wide receiver but it will be an issue if injuries happen.
