Raiders Roster Evaluation: Darron Lee

The 2021 NFL Draft is now behind us, and that means teams across the NFL are in the process of piecing together their entire rosters.

The Las Vegas Raiders are likely no different before what could be a pivotal fourth season of the second Jon Gruden era.

That's why we'll be going over roster evaluations for the Raiders players and position groups to see how everyone's stock measures up heading into the summer.

Even as the offseason progresses into the summer and training camps get closer to starting, there's still time for teams to make significant free-agent additions. 

That's what the Raiders could have just done with the recent announcement that they've signed linebacker Darron Lee to a one-year deal. 

The former 20th overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft by the New York Jets, Lee excited scouts with what was considered to have elite speed at linebacker. 

He's shown flashes of that kind of play over the last five years but has never been able to put it all together for a whole season. 

In terms of rating, he had his best season in 2018, when he had a career-high in interceptions with three and had a coverage grade of 84.8 from Pro Football Focus. 

He was below average in every other category though and has been rated overall as below average for the majority of his career so far. 

He also was suspended by the NFL for four games in 2018 for violating the league's substance-abuse policy. 

He hasn't been a starter in the last two years, playing more on special teams with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2019 and only being active for two games with the Buffalo Bills last season. 

What the Raiders could present is a fresh start, a chance for Lee to revitalize himself after being labeled as a bust. 

Still just 26 years old, he should still have the talent to do it. It'll be on the Raiders to see if they can bring it out of him on a consistent basis.