During the 2020 NFL draft, the Raiders made one of the most surprising picks of the first round as they selected Damon Arnette with the No. 19. Most draftniks had Arnette going much lower after just one year of production at Ohio State. Still, the Raiders felt good enough about the prospect to still take him inside the top-20.
Unfortunately, Arnette had a really rough rookie season as he dealt with injuries. Even when he was healthy, he really struggled and didn’t look like a starting cornerback. According to Pro Football Reference, quarterbacks had a passer rating of 106.9 when targeting Arnette as he totaled just two pass defelections and zero interceptions.
But the Raiders are optimistic about Arnette heading into his sophomore seasons. One reason why is due to all of the hard work that he put in over the offseason. In a recent article by W.G. Ramirez of the Associated Press, he mentioned that Arnette added a significant amount of muscle over the spring:
“Now, with an added 20 pounds of muscle and feeling much healthier than he did last summer — both mentally and physically — Arnette said he’s ready to prove it’s his time and is prepared to compete for a starting role within the deep Raiders secondary.”
At the NFL Combine in 2020, Arnette weighed in at 195 pounds. Now, he sits at 215 pounds and is one of the heavier cornerbacks in the league. But that makes sense given his physical play style.
Arnette has reportedly looked much more comfortable in camp so far despite the pads not coming on yet. He is in a battle with veteran Casey Hayward for snaps, but given the public support from his head coach, don’t be surprised if Arnette wins the job outright.
It’s a big year for Arnette as he will be playing for snaps. But the offseason buzz surrounding the former Ohio State star has been overwhelmingly positive. The Raiders need him to step up in a big way if the defense wants to improve at all this season.