The Las Vegas Raiders have traded cornerback Jakorian Bennett to the Philadelphia Eagles in exchange for defensive tackle Thomas Booker IV, ESPN’s Adam Schefter was the first to report.
Bennett, who was entering his third season after being a fourth-round pick in the 2023 NFL draft, was a Week 1 starter as a rookie and last year. He played in 24 games with 11 starts for the Raiders, compiling 11 passes defended and 58 tackles during that timeframe.
This offseason, the Maryland product seemed like he was gearing up for a breakout campaign, finally solidifying himself as a regular first-stringer after showing plenty of growth in 2024. However, at 5-foot-11 and under 32-inch arms, per MockDraftable, he didn’t meet new head coach Pete Carroll’s typical size thresholds for outside cornerbacks.
As a result, Bennett spent the majority of OTAs, minicamp and the first two weeks of training camp working with the Raiders’ second- and third-team defense. Free-agent signing Eric Stokes, 2024 fourth-round pick Decamerion Richardson and rookie third-round pick Darien Porter have been competing for the two starting cornerback spots on the boundary of Las Vegas’ defense. Those three meet Carroll’s size preference for the position.
Meanwhile, the Raiders are searching for answers at defensive tackle after releasing Christian Wilkins at the beginning of training camp. Booker figures to add some depth to the position group and could compete for the open starting spot in the trenches, seeing as it’s a wide-open position battle after Wilkins’ departure.
The Stanford product was a fifth-round pick by the Houston Texans during the 2022, participating in 10 games (one start) as a rookie in Houston. The Texans waived him at the end of training camp the following season before he was signed to the Eagles’ practice squad, where he spent the entire 2023 campaign.
Last season, Booker participated in all 17 regular-season games (one start) and four playoff contests in Philadelphia, including the Super Bowl LIX win over the Kansas City Chiefs. He’s accumulated 33 tackles, 1.5 sacks and three TFLs between his tenure with the two clubs.
The Raiders and Eagles made the trade official on Tuesday, as each club announced it on their respective social media accounts.
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