The Las Vegas Raiders are expected to sign former New York Giants cornerback Darnay Holmes to the active roster, according to Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report.

Darnay Holmes was a 2020 Giants draft pick, when current Raiders defensive coordinator, Patrick Graham, was in New York under head coach Joe Judge. Holmes has been a member of the Giants in each year of his career, but he eventually lost out on a roster spot this season.

It is not a big surprise to see the Raiders pick up a player that Graham is familiar with, especially given the questions that remain on the back end for Los Angeles. While with the Giants, Graham was highly thought of, and current head coach Brian Daboll wanted to retain him when he came in as head coach to replace Judge. That did not happen, as Graham wanted a new start with the Raiders after he was initially allowed to interview for the defensive coordinator position with the Steelers.

For Holmes, he will try to earn a starting role with the Raiders now as they try to strengthen the back end of their defense and give pass rushers like Maxx Crosby and Christian Wilkins time to rush the quarterback.

What will Darnay Holmes bring to the Raiders?

While Holmes is not a shutdown corner by any means, and expectations should not be too high, he is a player that makes sense in Graham's scheme, which emphasizes zone more than man. When Graham left the Giants and Wink Martindale came in to replace him, it was the exact opposite type of scheme that fits Holmes' strengths.

Martindale is a blitz-heavy defensive coordinator, and he lets his corners live on an island in one-on-one matchups. Graham is more of a conservative defensive coordinator, at least in comparison to Martindale, and like mentioned before, uses more zone converages.

As far as the role that Holmes will play with the Raiders, if he does get on the field, it will be in the slot corner role. He joins a cornerback group that has Jack Jones and Jakorian Bennett projected as starters on the outside, with Nate Hobbs listed as the current starting nickel corner.

It will be interesting to see if Holmes can get on the field early. Having experience in Graham's scheme gives him an advantage and should help him get acclimated quickly.

It will be worth watching to see if Holmes can get on the field in Week 1 against the Los Angeles Chargers.