With training camp less than a month away, the Las Vegas Raiders are heading into a summer packed with storylines. But one of the most intriguing battles may be hiding near the back end of the defensive end room, where an undrafted rookie has a real shot to carve out a role.
That player is Cian Slone, a spring addition out of North Carolina State who could end up being the answer to a very specific problem. The Raiders have clear names ahead of him - Maxx Crosby, Kwity Paye, Malcolm Koonce and rookie third-rounder Keyron Crawford - but the fifth edge rusher spot is up for grabs. With Tyree Wilson and Charles Snowden no longer in the picture, the door is open.
Slone’s path to this moment has been uneven, but not without promise. He began his college career at Utah State, where he put together two productive seasons in the Mountain West with 9.5 sacks, 16.0 tackles for loss and 77 total tackles. His lone season at NC State was quieter in the box score, producing just 1.5 sacks and 6.5 tackles for loss, though he still finished with 61 tackles.
The role changed along the way, too. At Utah State, Slone worked from both a 3-point and 2-point stance.
At NC State, he was almost always standing up before the snap. The step up in competition may help explain the dip in production, but he still earned a reputation as a strong run defender and kept improving in that area each year.
The pass-rush numbers, though, leave room for concern. His college pass-rush win-rates were 12.9% in 2023, 11.5% in 2024 and 8.9% in 2025. Even so, he was viewed as draftable after a strong Senior Bowl and landed in Las Vegas as a priority UDFA.
He also appears to have made an early impression. Word is that Slone has stood out in offseason work, enough to put himself on the radar for a roster spot. At 6-foot-3 and 239 pounds, he’s considered short and light for the position, but he brings a white-hot motor, quickness, pass-rush feel, heavy effort against the run and an explosive mean streak.
That combination has The Athletic’s Sam Warren projecting him onto the 53-man roster. In Warren’s latest projection, Slone makes the team ahead of Brennan Jackson and Jahfari Harvey.
Warren wrote: "The trade of Tyree Wilson and the release of Charles Snowden this offseason could provide an opportunity for another pass rusher to latch on. If one does, Slone seems a likely candidate," Warren wrote.
"The undrafted rookie impressed in offseason practices and received opportunities to work with veteran groups in team periods, which none of his other peers did. Whether he can provide special teams value will be the true measure of if he can stick, but he might be the likeliest UDFA to make the roster."
That special teams piece may decide everything. Bottom-of-the-roster players have to prove they can help there, and Slone has already shown some signs. He has been encouraging on kick coverage and logged 204 college special teams snaps, with experience on punt return, kick return and FG/XP block.
For Slone, the path is straightforward now: keep building on what he’s shown, use camp to separate himself and turn this summer into a launchpad. The Raiders need a fifth edge rusher, and he has a real chance to be the one who fills it.
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