Raiders WR Andre Holmes
[UPDATED APRIL 14] The Raiders continued to fill out their receiving corps by announcing the re-signings of restricted free agents Andre Holmes and Rod Streater last week. The pair of receivers will be back in Silver and Black for the 2015 season, as well as fellow restricted free agents S Larry Asante, P Marquette King and S Brandian Ross.
According to the 2014 Player Personnel Handbook, unrestricted free agents are described as "Players with three Accrued Seasons whose contracts have expired are subject to a Right of First Refusal and/or Draft Choice Compensation, pursuant to Article 9 (Veteran Free Agency), Section 2 of the 2011 Collective Bargaining Agreement."
As a result of signing their free agent tenders, both Holmes and Streater will be eligible to hit unrestricted free agency at the beginning of the 2016 league year, making 2015 an important season for the pair of young wide outs.
After appearing in 10 games for Oakland in 2013, Holmes enjoyed a career year in 2014, appearing in all 16 games, leading the team with 693 receiving yards and displaying an innate ability to make acrobatic catches downfield.
Streater, on the other hand, suffered a broken foot early in the season and was placed on Injured Reserve on October 2.
Prior to 2014, the former Temple Owl enjoyed an upward trajectory on the field, playing in all 16 games in 2013 as well as leading the team with 888 receiving yards.
Now that Holmes and Streater are officially inked for 2015, let's take a look at who else will be returning from the Raiders receiving corps.
At the conclusion of 2014 the Silver and Black parted ways with Vincent Brown and Denarius Moore, who were signed by the Indianapolis Colts and Cincinnati Bengals respectively.
Brown appeared in just seven games during his tenure in Oakland, however, Moore was selected in the fifth round of the 2011 NFL Draft and appeared in 51 games, totaling 2,169 receiving yards during his time as a Raider.
After enjoying a career year in 2014, hauling in a career-high 73 catches for 666 yards and six touchdowns, Bay Area-native James Jones is set to begin his second campaign in Oakland.
After spending the first seven years of his professional career in Green Bay, the steady receiver provided a veteran presence for QB Derek Carr and the Raiders receivers and also infused a championship pedigree into the locker room.
Brice Butler and Kenbrell Thompkins are also set to return in 2015, with the pair of receivers accounting for 489 yards and two touchdowns during 2014.
The Raiders also added another weapon for second-year QB Derek Carr by signing WR Michael Crabtree Monday.
The veteran wide out spent the previous six seasons in San Francisco with the 49ers, hauling in 347 receptions and 26 touchdowns during his time across the Bay.
Throughout his career, the former Texas Tech Red Raider has proven to be a productive receiver, leading the NFC in postseason receiving yards in 2012 as well as postseason receiving touchdowns in 2014.
After Streater was placed on Injured Reserve due to injury in 2014, the Raiders aerial attack struggled to find success in the vertical passing game, totaling just 22 passing plays of 25 yards or more which ranked 27th in the league.
For that reason, there have been a number of media members who've stated the team is without a true number-one receiver and may be looking to change that come draft day. In the most recent version of Mel Kiper, Jr.'s mock draft, the ESPN expert has the Raiders selecting Alabama wide out Amari Cooper.
In addition to Cooper, the other receiver who has continually been connected to the Raiders in the mock drafts is West Virginia's Kevin White. Both Cooper and White enjoyed decorated collegiate careers, with Cooper earning All-America honors, as well being named a Heisman Trophy Finalist, with White enjoying a breakout 2014, hauling in 109 receptions for 1,447 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Mel Kiper, Jr.'s most recent "Big Board" featured four wide receivers in the top 10.
At the beginning of the offseason program, the Raiders have the following wide receivers on the roster: Butler, former Michigan stand-out and former New England Patriots 7th round pick Jeremy Gallon, Holmes, Jones, Seth Roberts, Streater and Thompkins.
