Eric Stokes

Latest On Raiders’ Secondary Plans

June 23rd, 2025 at 9:01am CST by Adam La Rose

The free agent departures of Tre’von Moehrig and Nate Hobbs created notable vacancies in the secondary for Las Vegas. The team will have a number of new faces in place this year as a result, and training camp will see multiple battles for starting spots take place.

During OTAs, free agent addition Eric Stokes and third-round rookie Darien Porter handled starting duties at the cornerback spots. Those two are in line to remain atop the depth chart through the summer as a result, but other options will content for a fist-team gig. One of those is Jakorian Bennett, whom The Athletic’s Tashan Reed notes is the top contender to earn a starter’s role during training camp (subscription required).

Bennett joined the Raiders as a fourth-round pick in 2023. He notched four starts as a rookie before seeing a notable jump in playing time last year. The 24-year-old logged a 71% snap share on defense, totaling eight pass breakups and managing to avoid allowing a touchdown as the nearest defender in coverage. Bennett has two years remaining on his rookie deal, so he will provide the Raiders with a cost-effective CB option even if he is unable to unseat Stokes and Porter this summer (an effort which will be aided once he recovers in full from a torn labrum suffered in November).

Darnay Holmes – who was only a part-time defender in 2024, his debut season with the Raiders – is in line to handle a notable role in the slot, Reed adds. Vegas could use a number of three-safety looks this season, though, especially given free agent addition Jeremy Chinn‘s tendency to play near the line of scrimmage. In cases where three safeties were used this spring, Lonnie Johnson Jr. came onto the field. The seven-year veteran could therefore find himself handling a notable workload on his latest team.

While the Raiders are not in the market for Jalen Ramsey, they have the cap space to make an addition or two in the secondary. One veteran corner who could be of interest, per Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, is Mike Hilton. The 31-year-old remains on the free agent market with his four-year Bengals run having come to an end. A veteran of 123 games and 56 starts, Hilton would give the Raiders another experienced option in the slot.

Plenty of time remains for the team to make moves affecting the secondary. Regardless of what takes place during the first training camp with the new regime, though, that unit will be one to watch closely.

Raiders Could Field New-Look Starting Secondary

June 14th, 2025 at 5:18pm CST by Ely Allen

Looking at how things are going in offseason workouts so far, there’s a chance that the Raiders could see only one starter from last year’s secondary return with the first-team defense in 2025. We already saw a free agent exchange at safety, with Tre’von Moehrig being replaced by Jeremy Chinn after signing with the Panthers. Now, according to ESPN’s Ryan McFadden, both of last year’s starting cornerbacks are working with the second team this summer.

In his report earlier this week, McFadden noted that, so far in Organized Team Activities, it’s been free agent addition Eric Stokes and rookie third-round pick Darien Porter running on the first-team defense, while Jakorian Bennett and Decamerion Richardson, who tied for the second-most starts in the team’s cornerbacks room last year, are getting reps on the second team.

This shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. Last year, the Raiders didn’t have a single cornerback rank in the top half of players at the position with enough snaps to qualify for Pro Football Focus’s rankings system (subscription required). Nate Hobbs (72nd of 116) was the highest ranked corner on the team, and Jack Jones (102nd) was cut after starting 16 games in 2024. Bennett (85th) and Richardson (114th) were then tasked with holding off Stokes, who ranked 72nd in Green Bay last year, and the rookie, Porter.

Though Stokes has never started for a full season, he’s got plenty of experience on first-team defenses after starting 32 of 45 appearances during his time with the Packers. Statistically and analytically, Stokes’ rookie campaign was by far his best. That year, he started 14 games, nabbed an interception, and registered 14 passes defensed, earning him a ranking of 45th out of 116 cornerbacks, per PFF. After a disappointing start to his sophomore season, injuries set in. Stokes ended up missing 22 of 25 games leading up to last year, when he appeared in every game of the season.

Porter’s early starting role comes as a bit of a surprise. Coming into the NFL at 24 years old after a six-year collegiate career at Iowa State, Porter only has seven starts under his belt. Originally a wide receiver commit for the Cyclones, Porter switched to cornerback in his fourth year with the team. After serving as a rotational defender in his first two year on defense, Porter got all seven starts in his sixth year as the team’s CB3. After only seeing four passes defensed in his first two defensive seasons, Porter broke out last year with five passes defensed and three interceptions. That meteoric rise appears set to continue in Las Vegas.

A fourth-round pick two years ago, Bennett started four games as a rookie. He started seven of the team’s first 10 games last season as he tried to play through a torn labrum, per Tashan Reed of The Athletic, but the injury worsened and led Bennett to undergo season-ending surgery. Now, Bennett has two hurdles to overcome as he attempts to earn back a starting role while trying to get back to form following the surgery. Richardson was the one to step in for Bennett in the starting lineup to close out the season. Quarterbacks targeting Richardson completed 30 of 46 passes for 459 yards and three touchdowns during his rookie season.

We still have a long way to go before the start of the season, so any number of updates could change the outlook for the depth chart. At the moment, though, it’s looking like safety Isaiah Pola-Mao could be the only starter from last year’s secondary to return to his role in 2025.

Raiders To Sign CB Eric Stokes

March 11th, 2025 at 6:25pm CST by Sam Robinson

Eric Stokes battled injuries for much of his Packers tenure, but the veteran cornerback is a former first-round pick who has made 32 NFL starts. The Raiders will see if he can recapture the form that intrigued front offices out of the draft.

The Raiders are adding Stokes on a one-year contract, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets. A day after the Packers poached Nate Hobbs on a top-market slot deal, the Raiders will bring in Stokes for $4MM.

Although injuries dogged Stokes in 2022 and ’23, he did suit up every Packers game last season. Stokes did not last the season as a starter, being removed from the lineup after five games, and he did not reenter the first-string mix when Jaire Alexander went down.

Still, Stokes brings elite speed, having run a 4.25-second 40-yard dash before the 2021 draft, and will be joining a Pete Carroll secondary. The accomplished coach coaxed many Seahawks cover men to success, with D.J. Reed, Shaquill Griffin and Riq Woolen faring well in Carroll’s system after Richard Sherman ascended to the All-Pro level.

Stokes, 26, has a ways to go before even being deemed a reliable starter, let alone a success story. But he will attempt to use the Raiders as a way to elevate his stock after a Wisconsin nosedive. A Lisfranc injury halted Stokes’ early-career progress midway through the 2022 season, and hamstring trouble ruined his 2023 slate. Stokes said last year overcompensation from the foot issue led to the hamstring trouble. Overall, Stokes has made three trips to IR since that 2022 injury.

Pro Football Focus viewed Stokes as a promising rookie, but he graded outside the top 100 among CB regulars in 2022 before the injury. Last season, PFF placed Stokes 74th during a 588-snap season. The Packers have seen Stokes bolt and are likely to cut Jaire Alexander, whom they are shopping. Hobbs will step into a key role in Green Bay. As far as Stokes’ path, he will vie for time with Jack Jones, Jakorian Bennett and Decamerion Richardson. Stokes has primarily worked as a boundary corner, which would not make him a one-for-one Hobbs replacement.

CB Eric Stokes Has Path Back To Packers’ Starting Lineup

June 25th, 2024 at 4:49pm CST by Sam Robinson

An inability to count on Eric Stokes led the Packers to decline the cornerback’s fifth-year option last month. The team has seen injuries sidetrack the 2021 draftee’s career, bringing about a contract year.

Stokes was not viewed as a starter going into training camp last year, despite having worked in that capacity — when healthy — for most of his first two seasons. The Packers had Rasul Douglas and Keisean Nixon working as their Jaire Alexander sidekicks at that point. Douglas is now in Buffalo, and Green Bay did not make a significant offseason addition to address its other boundary CB spot. This reopens the door for Stokes, provided he can stay healthy.

Injuries have defined Stokes’ NFL career, but he may well be the clubhouse leader to start opposite Alexander in Week 1. Stokes sits as the Packers’ current No. 2 cornerback starter, per The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman, with ESPN.com’s Rob Demovsky also noting the fourth-year defender is firmly in the mix to reclaim a starting job.

Stokes stayed healthy throughout the offseason program, Demovsky adds, though his past will undoubtedly make CB insurance important in Green Bay. The Georgia alum suffered a Lisfranc injury and sustained meniscus damage in November 2022, ending his second season and requiring multiple surgeries. Stokes attributed his persistent hamstring trouble — which led to two IR placements last season — to overcompensation following the foot injury.

Certainly eyeing a long-term Stokes run as a first-stringer when they drafted him 29th overall in 2021, the Packers used the 6-foot defender as a 23-game starter from 2021-22. Showcasing elite speed (via a 4.25-second 40-yard dash time) at the Combine, Stokes fared well in Alexander’s place. After Alexander’s season-altering shoulder injury moved Stokes into the lineup on a full-time basis, the younger CB allowed only a 49.5% completion rate and a 71.3 passer rating as the closest defender in 2021. Pro Football Focus slotted Stokes 45th among corners that year. PFF did not see Stokes flash the same form in 2022, ranking him 105th among CB regulars. Stokes’ three-game 2023 season can effectively be written off, but it did lead to relevant reps for the other player vying to land the CB2 role.

A 2023 seventh-round pick, Carrington Valentine started 12 games last season and was in Green Bay’s lineup during both playoff contests. PFF ranked Valentine 90th among cornerback regulars last year, however. Alexander also missed time due to injury last season, opening the door for a Valentine-Corey Ballentine combo. Ballentine, a 2019 Giants UDFA, remains on the Packers’ roster, though Schneidman adds a Stokes-Valentine competition will likely decide the starting job opposite Alexander. The loser will supply depth, with the Pack also using a seventh-round pick in a corner (Penn State’s Kalen King) this year.

The Packers shut down Alexander trade rumors after his inconsistent season, keeping his CB-record contract (four years, $84MM) on the payroll. Stokes looms as a bit of a wild card for the team, which has some long-term questions at the position. But he can enhance his value considerably with a solid 2024 season. The Packers hold exclusive negotiating rights with the now-extension-eligible cover man until March 2025.

Packers’ Eric Stokes Addresses Injury Trouble; Zach Tom, Tucker Kraft Rehabbing Pec Tears

May 31st, 2024 at 11:59am CST by Sam Robinson

Injuries have largely defined Eric Stokes‘ NFL career thus far. The Packers have seen their 2021 first-round pick miss 21 games over the past two seasons; the Lisfranc injury the cornerback sustained in 2022 is at the root of the availability issues.

Once Stokes recovered from his foot issue, hamstring trouble hindered him for most of last season. Stokes began the season late thanks to multiple hamstring setbacks during the summer. The Packers ended up placing the three-year veteran on IR twice — both times due to hamstring trouble. The team predictably declined the former No. 29 overall pick’s fifth-year option earlier this month.

Now in a contract year, the oft-injured starter will aim to shake the lingering injury trouble and attempt to boost his value ahead of free agency — or a potential Packers extension. Stokes, who underwent knee and foot surgeries following his midseason 2022 setback, views the 2022 foot setback as the catalyst for his ensuing health issues.

“It was dealing with everything from the foot injury that I had,” Stokes said, via the Green Bay Press-Gazette’s Ryan Wood. “It was bouncing back from that. It’s crazy how everything is connected in your body to where if one area is weak, the other parts of your body will try to take control, or put more workload on it. So that’s what pretty much was going on. My hamstring was taking on so much workload that it pretty much kept messing up.”

Stokes, who blazed to a 4.25-second 40-yard dash clocking as a prospect in 2021, displaying starter-level form would certainly boost the Packers’ cause. Matt LaFleur said Stokes looks in his best form as a Packer. The team traded Rasul Douglas to the Bills at last year’s deadline and turned to former seventh-rounder Carrington Valentine opposite Jaire Alexander. Of course, Alexander also missed much of last season due to injury. Former Giants sixth-rounder Corey Ballentine ended up starting six games. Both former Day 3 picks are still on Green Bay’s roster.

The Packers re-signed slot corner Keisean Nixon in March but did not make a notable addition on the outside (beyond seventh-rounder Kalen King), keeping the door ajar for Stokes, who started 23 games over his first two seasons. Stokes’ health figures to be a key variable for the Packers, who have Alexander signed to the current top cornerback deal (four years, $84MM).

Elsewhere on the injury front in Green Bay, right tackle Zach Tom and tight end Tucker Kraft are rehabbing pectoral tears. Neither regular is participating in the team’s OTA sessions, but training camp returns are in play.

Tom has a better chance of being available, having suffered his tear in April. Kraft, however, sustained his pec injury less than three weeks ago. That would put the second-year pass catcher as a clear candidate to start camp on the active/PUP list. Adding to an interesting spring of chest injuries, LaFleur — per SI.com’s Bill Huber — is also rehabbing a pec tear sustained while lifting weights.

It might still be optimistic for either player to be ready in time for camp. Tom said his surgery calls for an eight- to 12-week recovery timetable. Undergoing the operation in late April, the third-year tackle said he hopes to return by “at least” mid-August. Tom showed promise last season, starting 19 games at right tackle and grading as Pro Football Focus’ No. 15 overall tackle.

The Packers moved Stokes from the active/PUP list to the reserve/PUP, which sidelines players for at least four games, last year. Tom has a clear path to keeping his RT job, even with the team’s additions of Andre Dillard and first-rounder Jordan Morgan. Kraft operated as a complementary option to Luke Musgrave during the duo’s rookie season.

Packers To Decline Fifth-Year Option On CB Eric Stokes

May 2nd, 2024 at 2:18pm CST by Adam La Rose

A second fifth-year option decision has been made today. Just like the Titans with fellow corner Caleb Farley, the Packers will set Eric Stokes up for free agency next offseason. The latter will have his option declined, per Mike Garafolo of NFL Network.

Stokes was an impactful starter right away upon entering the NFL, logging 14 starts. He recorded 55 stops, 14 pass deflections and one interception that year, showcasing his potential as a long-term mainstay in the Packers’ secondary. Things have not gone according to plan on the injury front since then, however.

The 25-year-old was shut down after nine games in 2022, and in the subsequent offseason he underwent knee and foot surgeries. When healthy near the start of this past season, the Packers’ depth at corner left him outside of the starting lineup. The trade sending Rasul Douglas away at the deadline appeared to open up a first-team role once again for Stokes, but the latter wound up back on injured reserve shortly after returning to action. He finished the campaign on IR for a second time.

In all, Stokes has been limited to just 12 games across the past two years. As such, it comes as little surprise the Packers will pass on his option. Picking it up would have cost a fully-guaranteed $12.47MM in 2025, a pricey figure considering the risk of further missed time. Green Bay also has a lucrative CB commitment on the books in the form of Jaire Alexander, who is under contract through 2026.

Slot man/returner Keisean Nixon is also attached to a $6MM-per-year deal, and the Packers will wait to see how the 2024 season turns out before investing further in Stokes. The Georgia alum will compete with the likes of Corey Ballentine, Robert Rochell and seventh-round rookie Kalen King for defensive snaps in 2024. If he manages to remain healthy, a season similar to that of his rookie campaign could set Stokes up for a strong free agent market and a notable deal from Green Bay or another team. His ability to deliver on that front will be a key storyline for the team this season.

2025 NFL Fifth-Year Option Tracker

April 24th, 2024 at 10:57pm CST by Sam Robinson

NFL teams have until May 2 to officially pick up fifth-year options on 2021 first-rounders. The 2020 CBA revamped the option structure and made them fully guaranteed, rather than guaranteed for injury only. Meanwhile, fifth-year option salaries are now determined by a blend of the player’s position, initial draft placement and performance- and usage-based benchmarks:

Two-time Pro Bowlers (excluding alternates) will earn the same as their position’s franchise tag
One-time Pro Bowlers will earn the equivalent of the transition tag
Players who achieve any of the following will receive the average of the third-20th-highest salaries at their position:
- At least a 75% snap rate in two of their first three seasons
- A 75% snap average across all three seasons
- At least 50% in each of first three seasons
Players who do not hit any of those benchmarks will receive the average of the third-25th top salaries at their position

With the deadline looming, we will use the space below to track all the option decisions from around the league:

QB Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars ($25.66MM): Exercised
QB Zach Wilson, Broncos* ($22.41MM): Declined
QB Trey Lance, Cowboys** ($22.41MM): Declined
TE Kyle Pitts, Falcons ($10.88MM): Exercised
WR Ja’Marr Chase, Bengals ($21.82MM): Exercised
WR Jaylen Waddle, Dolphins ($15.59MM): Exercised
T Penei Sewell, Lions ($19MM): Extended through 2029
CB Jaycee Horn, Panthers ($12.47MM): Exercised
CB Patrick Surtain, Broncos ($19.82MM): Exercised
WR DeVonta Smith, Eagles ($15.59MM): Extended through 2028
QB Justin Fields, Steelers*** ($25.66MM): Declined
DE Micah Parsons, Cowboys ($21.32MM): Exercised
T Rashawn Slater, Chargers ($19MM): Exercised
OL Alijah Vera-Tucker, Jets ($13.31MM): Exercised
QB Mac Jones, Jaguars**** ($25.66MM): Declined
LB Zaven Collins, Cardinals ($13.25MM): Declined
T Alex Leatherwood, Raiders: N/A
LB Jaelan Phillips, Dolphins ($13.3MM): Exercised
LB Jamin Davis, Commanders ($14.48MM): Declined
WR Kadarius Toney, Chiefs***** ($14.35MM): Declined
DE Kwity Paye, Colts ($13.4MM): Exercised
CB Caleb Farley, Titans ($12.47MM): Declined
T Christian Darrisaw, Vikings ($16MM): Exercised
RB Najee Harris, Steelers ($6.79MM): Declined
RB Travis Etienne, Jaguars ($6.14MM): Exercised
CB Greg Newsome, Browns ($13.38MM): To be exercised
WR Rashod Bateman, Ravens ($14.35MM): N/A; extended through 2026
DE Payton Turner, Saints ($13.39MM): Declined
CB Eric Stokes, Packers ($12.47MM): Declined
DE Greg Rousseau, Bills ($13.39MM): Exercised
LB Odafe Oweh, Ravens ($13.25MM): Exercised
LB Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, Buccaneers ($13.25MM): Declined

* = Jets traded Wilson on April 22, 2024
** = 49ers traded Lance on August 25, 2023
*** = Bears traded Fields on March 16, 2024
**** = Patriots traded Jones on March 10, 2024
***** = Giants traded Toney on October 27, 2022

Packers Place CB Eric Stokes Back On IR

December 30th, 2023 at 2:03pm CST by Ely Allen

The 2023 season is going to be one to forget for Packers cornerback Eric Stokes. Two weeks after being activated from injured reserve, the 24-year-old out of Georgia will be headed back to IR for the remainder of the season. His 2023 season ends now after only three games played.

Stokes, a first-round pick out of Georgia two seasons ago, started out his career on a strong note. As a rookie, he missed only one game while starting 14. He put up strong numbers in pass defense, as well, recording an interception and 14 passes defensed. His sophomore season started off in a similar fashion. He started the first nine games of the season and recorded fewer stats, with quarterbacks targeting him at a much lower rate.

Unfortunately, this is when his injury troubles started. After structural damage was discovered in testing on ankle and knee injuries, Stokes was shut down for the second half of 2022. He was forced to undergo surgeries to his knee and foot in the offseason and faced a tough road back to a starting role with the emergence of Rasul Douglas across from Jaire Alexander and primary kick returner Keisean Nixon excelling in the slot.

Stokes started the 2023 season on the reserve/physically unable to perform list and was finally activated in mid-October, days before the team completed a trade that sent Douglas to Buffalo. Perhaps expecting Stokes to slide back into the starting role, Green Bay was surely disappointed when, after only four special teams snaps, Stokes was placed back on IR with a hamstring injury.

In part of his long road to recovery, Stokes finally was activated once again in time to start the Packers’ last two games. Unfortunately for both parties, Stokes’ hamstring issue has lingered, forcing the young corner back onto IR in a solemn continuation of hardship. Assuming his absences cease in next year’s season opener, Stokes will have missed 22 of a possible 25 games dating back to the ankle injury that started it all last season.

With Alexander serving a team-enforced suspension for crashing an official coin toss despite not being named a captain for the game, Green Bay’s stores are looking fairly bare. Robert Rochell is currently questionable with a neck injury, leaving Nixon to start alongside the likes of rookie seventh-round pick Carrington Valentine, Corey Ballentine, and David Long.

They will be joined by practice squad safety Benny Sapp III, who will serve as one of the team’s two standard gameday elevations tomorrow. In addition to Sapp, the Packers will also call up wide receiver Bo Melton.

Packers Activate CB Eric Stokes

December 16th, 2023 at 9:38pm CST by Adam La Rose

Eric Stokes has continued to miss game action after returning to practice, but that could change tomorrow. The Packers announced on Saturday that the former first-round corner has been activated from injured reserve.

Stokes returned to practice late last month, opening his 21-day activation window. He would have reverted to season-ending IR in the event he was not brought back into the fold within that timeframe. Instead, Green Bay will now have a former starter available for just the second time this season in time for Week 15.

The Georgia alum saw his first-team role disappear in 2023 with Rasul Douglas being used on the perimeter. The latter was dealt to the Bills at the trade deadline, however, clearing a path for Stokes to reclaim a starting spot. He logged only four special teams snaps in his lone action of the season so far (Week 7), so it will be worth watching how large of a workload he is given upon his return to action.

Fellow corner Jaire Alexander has been out for more than one month, so Stokes’ return will be a welcomed sight. Injuries have been a concern for Stokes during his relatively brief Green Bay tenure, and a healthy finish to the campaign would be signficant. The 24-year-old required foot and knee surgeries this offseason, and his most recent absence was caused by a hamstring injury. Stokes struggled last season after an encouraging rookie campaign, so his ability to rebound down the stretch in 2023 will be a key storyline to watch.

The Packers need to make a decision on Stokes’ fifth-year option this spring. Picking up the 2025 option would lock him into a salary of $11.28MM for that season, a costly figure given his play to date and the CB investment (four years, $84MM) already made in Alexander last offseason. For the time being, however, Green Bay will look to use Stokes to boost a defense which already ranks top-10 against the pass.

Sitting at 6-7 on the year, the team is in play for an NFC wild-card spot. Green Bay’s push for a postseason berth at the start of the Jordan Love era will depend in large part on the play of the first-year starting quarterback, of course, but Stokes could have a notable role to play as well. The Packers have six IR activations remaining.

Packers Designate Eric Stokes For Return

November 27th, 2023 at 8:11pm CST by Sam Robinson

Injuries have now sidetracked two Eric Stokes seasons. After a Lisfranc injury sidelined Stokes midway through last season, and after he rehabbed this year, multiple hamstring ailments led him to the reserve/PUP list. Stokes returned for one game but exited with more hamstring trouble.

The former first-round pick logged just four special teams snaps against the Broncos in Week 7, leaving with his latest hamstring malady. The Packers still have the former starter in their plans, however. The team designated Stokes for return from IR on Monday, starting his activation clock.

Stokes could soon be the rare player to come off the reserve/PUP list and IR in the same season. The Packers also designated Darnell Savage for return last week. Green Bay has not used an IR activation this season, putting the 5-6 team in good shape as it guns for a wild-card spot.

The Packers’ cornerback equation has also changed since Stokes was activated from the PUP list. Sitting 2-5 at the trade deadline, the Pack dealt starter Rasul Douglas to the Bills in a pick-swap transaction that brought back a 2024 third-round pick. Douglas was in place as a starter in front of Stokes, who had been a boundary starter in 2021 and ’22. The Packers had slid Douglas to the slot in 2022, attempting to accommodate Stokes and Jaire Alexander, but moved him back to his best position this season. With Douglas out of the picture, Green Bay has seen its cornerback equation change since the deadline.

Alexander has missed the past three games with a shoulder injury, moving Corey Ballentine into the starting lineup. In the only post-Douglas game with Alexander healthy, the Packers had he, Carrington Valentine and Keisean Nixon in place at corner. Pro Football Focus ranks Valentine, a seventh-round rookie, 65th overall among corners. The Packers have withstood Douglas’ departure, however, and are 2-1 without Alexander. Their CB group could again have some depth soon, with Stokes likely to give it another go.

Chosen 29th overall in 2021, Stokes impressed as a rookie but did not fare as well last season. The Georgia product allowed a completion percentage of 80% when in coverage, leading to an opposing passer rating of 123.5. Stokes needed foot and knee surgeries this offseason. While his career has not gone as the Packers envisioned, the 6-foot defender should soon have another chance to contribute.

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