Breaking: Raiders Favorite Starter Signed a Mega Deal With The New York Giants.

Fullback Jakob Johnson is leaving the Las Vegas Raiders after two seasons to play in the NFC East. On August 16, the New York Giants declared that they had added the veteran on their roster.

Johnson, a native of Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, has been a member of the team since the New England Patriots signed him in 2019. After serving as the team’s offensive coordinator for three seasons, he followed Josh McDaniels to the Raiders after the latter was promoted as head coach.

There are fewer competent fullbacks entering the NFL since fewer coaches are using them these days. Johnson may play a variety of positions for the Giants because he is also listed as a tight end. He has only 19 catches in five seasons, thus he isn’t much of a receiver. Carmen Bricillo, the offensive line coach, who spent the previous two seasons with the Raiders before moving to New York this offseason, is reconnecting with Johnson. In total, the fullback made 14 starts while he was in Las Vegas.

The Las Vegas Raiders don’t use Facebook. The Raiders used fullbacks this season under both McDaniels and former head coach Jon Gruden. Alec Ingold, a more adaptable and dynamic receiver, was used by Gruden, with Johnson serving primarily as additional protection.

The Raiders have elected to go without a fullback on the roster under new offensive coordinator Luke Getsy and head coach Antonio Pierce. This is more in line with what most NFL teams do. ESPN reports that in 2023, just 12 teams used fullbacks on offensive snaps.

Fullbacks are still effective in some offenses, although they are becoming considerably less common. The Raiders should be able to carry an extra running back or tight end because they don’t have a fullback. The club might also use tight ends in place of fullbacks. During a play in the team’s opening preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings, Brock Bowers lined up at fullback. He probably won’t line up in the backfield one more time after that.

The 12-Man Las Vegas Raiders roster is being planned.

In 2024, the Raiders want to deploy a 12-man base offense that consists of two tight ends, two wide receivers, and a running back. Although it’s uncommon for clubs to use this as their primary offense, Michael Mayer and Bowers are two excellent young tight ends in Las Vegas.

The team’s plans were broken down by The Athletic.

In a piece published on August 14, Tashan Reed and Ted Nguyen stated, “The usage of 12 personnel isn’t uncommon—it was used on 19.3 percent of offensive snaps across the league in 2023, according to TruMedia—but it’s rare a team will rely on it as its base personnel grouping.” Only five teams—the Miami Dolphins in 2021 being the most recent—have utilized this data on at least 50% of their offensive snaps since TruMedia started collecting it in 2007. The Raiders are optimistic that they can employ 12 to control matchups in both the run and pass games and dictate how opposing defenders will prepare.

It’s possible that Bowers and Mayer are just too good to not be on the field together for most offensive snaps. Whether this will be a recipe for success is still to be determined.