Aaron Bethke from California asks:
“Who will play NT this year?”
I believe the nose tackle position may once again be locked up by Johnathan Hankins. The defensive tackle re-signed with the Raiders on Monday and will be going into his fifth season with the organization. Hankins has previously played under defensive coordinator Patrick Graham with the New York Giants in 2016 where he produced one of his best seasons of his career. That year, Hankins had 43 total tackles, 10 quarterback hits, eight tackles for loss and three sacks.
Another player who could see plenty of snaps at nose tackle is free agent signing Bilal Nichols from the Chicago Bears. The 2018 fifth-round draft pick out of Delaware has started 31 games over the past two seasons with eight sacks in that span.
As for drafting another nose tackle to add to the room, Ohio State’s Haskell Garrett would be a nice option as a mid-round selection. Garrett grew up in Las Vegas, playing at Bishop Gorman, and showed good pass rushing…