There were many things that derailed the Las Vegas Raiders' 2024 campaign, with injuries being one of them. Even before the campaign started, the Raiders lost a key defender in edge rusher Malcolm Koonce to a season-ending knee injury.
It was an unfortunate situation for Koonce, who was entering a contract year and was coming off a breakout campaign that saw him tally eight sacks. Fortunately for Koonce, he plays a premium position and should still make a nice buck in 2025.
As far as what a Koonce contract could look like, Pro Football Focus projects a two-year deal worth $37.5 million, with $20 million guaranteed. That works out to an annual average of $18.75 million.
"If Koonce hadn’t suffered a season-ending knee injury before 2024 began and instead carried over his momentum from the back half of 2023, he could’ve been squarely within the top 10 of our list," the outlet wrote. "Perhaps the silver lining, if there is one, to getting injured so early in the year is that Koonce should be healthier entering the free agency period than if he got hurt during the season. A short-term deal where Koonce can hit the market again in 2026, or sign an extension one year into a two-year deal à la recent edge defenders like Uchenna Nwosu, could make sense."
According to Over the Cap, an $18.75 million annual average would place Koonce 16th among edge rushers in the NFL. That feels a bit high considering he's coming off a significant injury and only has one year with strong production.
The Raiders should have interest in bringing Koonce back with their need along the edge, and they'll have plenty of funds to get that done if they want. Las Vegas is projected to have $92.5 million in cap space, the second-most in the NFL.
Ideally, the Raiders re-sign Koonce to a short-term deal. If it's two years, Las Vegas should structure the contract with an out in Year 2 just in case Koonce's 2023 breakout campaign proves to have been a fluke.
