As former Chiefs defensive tackle, Dontari Poe, looks for a team to invest in him, he is now making quite a tour of the country. Oakland could be one of his stops.
Initially the Raiders were reported to be one of the teams along with the Jaguars, Falcons, and Dolphins, to be interested in Poe’s services. But as of Sunday the only actual visit he had lined up was with the Colts.
He has since moved on to visit the Jaguars and is now hopping a few miles north to visit with the Falcons, which means the report of the other interested clubs were real, leaving just the Dolphins and Raiders as teams without a reported visit thus far.
The more stops Poe makes, the more it would seem Oakland would be one of those he schedules. And remember, just because we don’t hear about a visit, doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.
The 6-3, 346-pound defensive tackle clearly isn’t finding the market he thought he would have. A 2-time Pro Bowler, he fell off a bit the past couple seasons. Some believe the reason for his drop off is back issues, which could also be why teams are not going hard after him.
Poe had surgery on a herniated disc prior to the 2015 season, causing him to miss all of training camp. He said last year that he has had back problems for years.
The primary area that suffered the past two seasons for Poe was his pass rush abilities. In his Pro Bowl years in 2013-14, he was considered one of the best pass rushing defensive tackles in the league, posting 10.5 sacks over those two seasons. He has had 2.5 the past two seasons since then.
Those concerns may force the 26-year-old to take a short term deal somewhere to try and prove he can return to form. For now, it’s clear several teams are at least willing to entertain such a deal, but if any of them had stepped up more, he would likely be off the market by now.
Loading comments...