The Oakland Raiders’ purge of proven, big-name veterans from their roster has continued with their release of defensive end Bruce Irvin.
Vic Tafur of The Athletic was the first to break the news, which the Raiders and Irvin subsequently confirmed.
“We would like to thank Bruce Irvin for his years of service to the Oakland Raiders and we wish him the best,” general manager Reggie McKenzie said per Tafur.
Irvin also tweeted out a message thanking the Raiders organization shortly after his release.
— Bruce Irvin (@BIrvin_WVU11) November 3, 2018
Irvin, 31, came over to Oakland from Seattle in 2016. He played all 40 games in his two and a half seasons with the Raiders. He racked up 15 sacks over his first two seasons, including a career-high eight last year.
This season, though, he has struggled in his role as the primary pass rusher without Khalil Mack as the Raiders’ pass rush has been nonexistent. He has three of the Raiders’ league-low seven sacks this year.
Irvin was limited to just nine defensive snaps in the Raiders’ Thursday night loss to the San Francisco 49ers. Gruden explained that Irvin's lack of playing time was due to the fact that the Raiders have not been in the lead this season.
But while Irvin has not been able to singlehandedly lift the Raiders’ pass rush, he should still garner a lot of interest from teams in need of more depth at edge rusher once he hits free agency. So after struggling away for a 1-7 Raiders team, there's a chance Irvin lands on a contender and actually plays some meaningful games this season.
Follow Us
Subscribe