Ziegler, McDaniels: Building Depth in RB Position is Key

Raiders general manager Dave Ziegler and head coach Josh McDaniels noted that building depth in the running back position is very important to both of them.

In the last article, we’ve talked about depth in the defensive line and the trend continues with the running backs.

For Las Vegas Raiders general manager Dave Ziegler and head coach Josh McDaniels, building depth in the tough positions is important to them.

“Well, I'd say running back is just a tough position in the league,” Ziegler said at the post-draft press conference. “Those guys take a pounding and it's a physical position.”

Ziegler drafted two running backs Zamir White and Brittain Brown in the fourth and seventh-round respectively.

“Being able to add young players there to compete, see if they can find a role, and again, it goes back to what was available and the best players that were available when it was our turn to pick.”

“Zamir was there and Britain was there, so we selected those players,” Ziegler said. “If it would have been different, if there was other players there, if it would have been two tight ends or two receivers that happened to be there who we thought were the best available at the time, we would have taken those players, too. It was kind of a product of the way that the board fell.”

While it didn’t necessarily have to be running backs for Ziegler, it kind of worked out that way. At the same time, he notes that there can never be enough good players at the running back position.

“Again, you can never have enough good players at any one position,” Ziegler said. “We've talked about it from the beginning, we want to build depth in competition. That's going to be a very important part of this program.”

“It was an opportunity to take some swings and add two good players that happened to be at the running back position.”

McDaniels has the same thinking as his partner in crime.

“Yeah, most camps we're going to have at minimum six and probably more likely seven at that position anyway,” McDaniels said. “It just so happens that we're kind of at that number. So we're working towards what we're going to eventually need anyhow, and each position is at a little bit of a different stage in terms of finalizing it.”

“But the backs are one of many that we're going to have to figure out how to fill it out as we go towards training camp here.”

The starting running back position is potentially up for grabs as the Raiders decided not to pick up the fifth-year option on running back Josh Jacobs.

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