According to Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle, the Oakland Raiders are finalizing an agreement that will keep left tackle Donald Penn in the Bay Area. He has made the free-agent rounds, visiting with the Giants, Lions and Steelers – but cross off the Steelers after they signed former Bronco Ryan Harris on Tuesday to a two-year, $3.9 million deal.
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Donald Penn is reportedly heading back to Oakland. Osemele can play guard and tackle and signed a five-year, $58.5 million contract on the first day of free agency.
It was always Penn’s stated desire to return to the Raiders, and the perception is that he used the threat of his Giants visit as leverage to bridge the gap between the team’s offer and his own financial desires.
The Raiders and Penn were gridlocked over compensation, but the sides made significant progress recently and found some common ground to build upon.
“I’m not going to lie, I’m going to you the truth”. Coming over as a tackle with the Ravens, Penn felt the team was moving forward without him. I don’t talk to my agent about deals during the season because I like to focus on my play.
While the Steelers aren’t likely to match Osemele’s $11.7 million average when it comes to DeCastro, they might get the Stanford product close to it. That would likely mean somewhere around $10 million a season.
Penn’s performance over the past couple of seasons suggests he has plenty left in the tank, though, and the fact that he can be counted upon to be on the field every week is a huge plus.
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But with a young core led by Carr, pass rusher Khalil Mack and receiver Amari Cooper, the Raiders feel like they are in position to content in the AFC West after Super Bowl champion Denver was hit by several free-agent defections.
