Trayvon Mullen is entering the final year of his rookie contract with the Raiders. Originally a second-round pick in the 2019 draft, Mullen has been a solid starter when he’s been on the field.
Before the 2021 season, Mullen appeared in all 32 games for the Raiders. But he missed 12 games last year due to a foot injury and now there are some concerns about how he will fare this season. But just how important is he to the overall success of the Raiders this year?
In a recent article by Ben Linsey of Pro Football Focus and ESPN, he wrote about every team’s biggest X-factor heading into the 2022 season. For the Raiders, that was none other than Mullen. Here is what he had to say about the former Clemson star:
“The Raiders’ secondary stands out as one of the weaker positional groups of this roster, but there also are several younger players who could outperform expectations.
Fourth-year cornerback Trayvon Mullen Jr. falls under that category. Mullen missed the majority of last season with a right foot injury, but he had a 73.9 PFF coverage grade in the first three games of the season after ranking seventh among cornerbacks with 11 pass breakups in 2020. There’s at least some reason for optimism heading into this season.”
When Mullen is healthy, he is a quality starting cornerback. His play can go up and down a bit. But overall, he has shown the ability to be a good starter.
With lots of question marks in the rest of the secondary, the Raiders desperately need Mullen to stay healthy and play like he did during the 2020 season. If he can do that, the Raiders could have a pretty decent young secondary with Mullen, Trevon Moehrig and Nate Hobbs.
But if Mullen struggles, the entire secondary could be in trouble as he is their only proven outside cornerback on the roster. That would be bad news for a team that will face a top-tier offense nearly every week this season. Needless to say, it’s a big year for Mullen entering the final year of his contract.