Brandon Wade/Associated Press
The Las Vegas Raiders added a playmaker to the back end of their defense Friday when they selected TCU safety Tre’von Moehrig with the No. 43 overall pick of the 2021 NFL draft.
Here is a look at how Moehrig fits into his new team’s depth chart:
DE: Clelin Ferrell, Matt Dickerson
NT: Quinton Jefferson, Johnathan Hankins
DT: Solomon Thomas, Niles Scott, Kendal Vickers
DE: Maxx Cosby, Carl Nassib, Chris Smith, David Irving
SLB: Yannick Ngakoue, Nicholas Morrow, Gerri Green
MLB: Nick Kwiatkoski, Asmar Bilal
WLB: Cory Littleton, Tanner Muse, James Onwualu
LCB: Trayvon Mullen, Isaiah Johnson, Kemah Siverand
SS: Johnathan Abrams, Jeff Heath, Javin White
FS: Tre’von Moehrig*, Karl Joseph, Dallin Leavitt
RCB: Damon Arnette, Rasul Douglas, Keisean Nixon, Rashaan Gaulden
NB: Amik Robertson, Nevin Lawson
Depth chart info provided by Ourlads and Over the Cap.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport provided some context as to why Moehrig slid in the draft:
Ian Rapoport @RapSheet
The #Raiders took TCU S Trevon Moehrig. Why did Moehrig slide to No. 43? Source said he injured his back while training. He wore tape on it at his workout, scouts noticed, then got an MRI that revealed some issues. Clearly affected his stock.
Moehrig broke through as an impressive playmaker during the 2019 season when he was named a first-team All-Big 12 performer by the league’s coaches. He tallied 62 tackles, four interceptions, 11 pass breakups and two forced fumbles.
He continued earning national recognition in 2020 as the Jim Thorpe Award winner as the nation’s best defensive back behind 47 tackles, two interceptions and nine pass breakups.
B/R NFL Scouting Department rated him as the 20th best player in the draft on its final big board. It also listed him as the best and most versatile safety.
The versatility immediately stands out because Moehrig is much more than a safety who can deliver big hits. He can cover receivers downfield, which comes as no surprise since he was a cornerback as a high school recruit, all while possessing the ability to play as a center fielder who can make plays on the ball and prevent long completions and runs.
“I thought he was better than both of our safeties when I studied him this summer off of 2019 tape,” an NFC scout said, per NFL.com. “(TCU coach) Gary (Patterson) asks a lot of his safeties, so you know the kid is very football smart.”
According to Pro Football Focus, the Horned Frogs safety forced an incompletion on 25 percent of targets that went his way since 2018, which is the highest mark in the entire draft class.
PFF also noted Moehrig’s 28 plays on the ball since 2019 were five more than any other safety at Power Five schools.
Between his versatility and ball-hawking skills, Moehrig figures to play a key role in Las Vegas’ secondary as soon as his rookie season.