Levi Edwards

John Crowley from California asked:

"Can you explain what a 3-4 defense would look like personnel wise? Also how nickel and dime sets would look up front."

A traditional 3-4 front consists of one nose tackle lined up at the center surrounded by two defensive ends. At the line of scrimmage, there's an outside linebacker who frequently rushes the passer or be disguised to drop back in coverage occasionally. There are another three linebackers who play in a hybrid role mixing pass coverage with blitzing.

Within nickel and dime packages, additional defensive backs are substituted in for linebacker on passing situations, hence why the additions ofTaron Johnsonand second-round pickTreydan Stukescould be crucial moving forward. In a base 3-4,Maxx Crosbywould be considered more of an outside linebacker than a traditional defensive end. Free agent signingKwity Payecould play a huge role inside next to the nose tackle.

However, the keyword behind all of this is base defense. It should be expected for defensive coordinator Rob Leonard to be multiple within his defense, throwing out several allotments and fronts against opposing offenses dependent upon their personnel and scheme.

James McFarland from Pennsylvania asks:

"How good can the linebacker group be, also how will they be utilized? They seem better at attacking the QB."

This plays perfectly into John's question, as it seems obvious to me that the Raiders have done a lot to improve the linebacking corps to complement their switch to a base 3-4 defense.

AddingNakobe Deancould unlock the entire unit with his ability to make plays in open space and come downhill fast blitzing the quarterback. He's compiled seven sacks and 15 quarterback pressures in his last two seasons and had a 40.7 quarterback pressure percentage in 2025, according to Next Gen Stats.

Quay Walkerpossess a lot of the same skills of his teammate. Walker led the Green Bay Packers in total tackles each of his four seasons and recorded a career-low 3.8 missed tackle percentage rate in 2025. Considering Walker's big 6-foot-4, 240-pound frame, he could also become useful as an edge rusher.

"If they get the one on one, we feel really good about those matchups," linebackers coach Ronnell Williamssaid Tuesday. "They open up a whole new section of the playbook, where you can feel really good about it.

"In addition to the pass rush element, the space eating element, the football I.Q, in position of becoming plus one in coverage that's the joy of coaching these guys and getting right in that manner."