Despite recent speculation to the contrary, Raiders head coach Jon Gruden indicated that the Raiders will exercise the fifth-year option on safety Karl Joseph (Twitter link via Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle). Of course, there’s still plenty of time between now and the May deadline, so things could change. 
The Raiders were reportedly willing to trade Joseph at last year’s trade deadline for a third-round pick, though they were unable to find any takers. Moving Joseph this time around could require taking a lot less and that might not make sense for the Raiders since the 2020 fifth-year option would be guaranteed for injury only.
Joseph has not quite set the world on fire since being taken with the No. 14 overall pick in 2016, but he did show some promise last year. Joseph finished out with 48 tackles, two sacks, an interception (the third of his career) and graded out as Pro Football Focus’ No. 23 ranked safety in the NFL.
Regardless of what happens with Joseph, the Raiders’ secondary will have a new look in 2019.
Either way, Joseph will have a new running mate in the Raiders’ defensive backfield in 2019. Veterans Reggie Nelson and Marcus Gilchrist are not expected to return, so there will be a new free safety starting opposite of Joseph’s spot at strong safety.