Jermaine Whitehead was released by the Browns earlier this month after the veteran safety issued several threatening tweets at Cleveland fans following the team's Week 9 loss to the Broncos. Whitehead apologized for his actions via social media shortly after his release.
On Monday, via NFL reporter Howard Balzer, Whitehead reportedly had a workout with the Raiders, who also reportedly worked out free agent cornerback DeShawn Snead. The Raiders, who are off to a surprising 5-4 start, are in need of help at the safety position after placing safety Karl Joseph -- a 2016 first round pick who was in the midst of arguably his best season to date -- on injured reserve. Oakland has already starting addressing the loss of Joseph, signing former Cardinals safety D.J. Swearinger.
Swearinger, the 57th overall pick in the 2013 draft, has 94 regular season games and 70 career starts under his belt. He played his college ball at South Carolina for legendary coach, Steve Spurrier.
"I like Swearinger," Oakland head coach Jon Gruden recently said of his new safety, via the team's official website. "He played with my brother in Washington and I was a broadcaster. At one point I spent a lot of time at South Carolina with my friend [Steve] Spurrier, so I know a little bit about Swearinger. I think he's a good player. He's just got to put it all together. That's what he needs to do and he's got to start that process today. We need the very best of Swearinger and we need guys like [Dallin] Leavitt and we need these other safeties to step up as well, just like Erik Harris has done."
While Gruden likes what Swearinger brings to the table, it's clear that the Raiders would still like to add more depth to their secondary. That added depth could provide an opportunity for Whitehead, a former undrafted rookie out of Auburn who had started in each of the Browns' first eight games of the 2019 season.
