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Former Dallas Cowboys Kenneth Murray Jr.
The Las Vegas Raiders‘ linebacker room is going to look very different in 2026. 2025 starters Jamal Adams, Devin White and Elandon Roberts are all gone.
To replace them, the team gave big money to Nakobe Dean and Quay Walker in free agency. While those two are already a significant upgrade, the Raiders don’t have great depth behind them. Cody Lindenberg and Tommy Eichenberg are promising young players, but they have taken limited snaps in their careers.
The Raiders may want to bring in an experienced veteran to provide more depth. Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report believes the Raiders should sign former Dallas Cowboys linebacker Kenneth Murray Jr.
“Murray started 14 games for the Tennessee Titans in 2024 and 16 games for the Dallas Cowboys in 2025. This past season, he recorded 81 tackles, one sack, two passes defended, and four tackles for loss,” Knox wrote. “Still only 27 years old, Murray can be viewed as a long-term contributor to a defense. However, he hasn’t been a consistent coverage linebacker and is best-suited for a two-down role—Murray has allowed an opposing passer rating of 109.0 in coverage during his career.
“Murray isn’t a high-level starter, but he’d be a logical target for teams looking to reload their linebacker groups, like the Cleveland Browns and Las Vegas Raiders.”
Murray Could Make Sense As Depth Piece
Murray first came into the NFL as a first-round pick of the Los Angeles Chargers, but he hasn’t been able to live up to his draft status. He has started 83 games in his career, so he’s got a ton of experience.
However, as Knox noted, he’s got serious issues in coverage. This late in the game, most of the free agent linebackers are likely going to struggle in coverage. Murray would make sense as a depth piece. Walker and Dean should be on the field most of the time. The Raiders likely won’t often have more than two true linebackers on the field. Murray is a capable veteran who would be a good insurance policy to have if either Walker or Dean has to miss time this season.
Raiders LB Coach is Happy With Talent
The Raiders’ defense could be greatly improved this season. They’ve spent big on key positions and also drafted a few potential impact defenders.
Linebackers coach Ronnell Williams believes that having such a strong linebacker duo will make the entire defense better.
“When you have dominant linebackers, they multiply your defense,” Williams said, via Raiders.com, “free up the DBs [defensive backs], takes the blocks off the D-line, and they make plays. That’s when your defense is special.”
Williams also isn’t sleeping on Lindenberg or Eichenberg having the chance to be impact players for the Raiders this season.
“Cody has been phenomenal this offseason through his development, building his confidence and flashing and making plays,” Williams said. “You can see his belief in himself start to take off. And Tommy has a hunger about him. … The intensity that he operates with on a day-to-day basis is kind of in the likes of Quay. … Very intense, everything is intentional.”
Austin Boyd has covered the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Lakers for Heavy.com since 2019. A Los Angeles native now based in Las Vegas, his featured work at Heavy includes interviews with NFL stars Darren Waller and Joe Montana, and a behind-the-scenes look at “The Shop.” More about Austin Boyd
