Former Eagles and Panthers cornerback Rasul Douglas agreed to join the Raiders on Monday. The team announced the signing.
Las Vegas will begin the season shorthanded at corner, with the recently re-signed Nevin Lawson set for another two-game suspension. Douglas will attempt to be part of the solution for a team that has struggled in pass coverage for many seasons.
A 2017 third-round Eagles pick, Douglas spent three seasons with Philadelphia. The 6-foot-2 corner did not see time on defense during the Eagles’ 2017 playoff run but started in both of Philly’s 2018 postseason tilts. He has logged 29 starts over his four-year career. The Panthers gave Douglas his biggest opportunity, claiming him off waivers last September and using him as an 11-game starter.
Douglas, who intercepted five passes between the 2017 and ’18 seasons, graded as a middle-of-the-pack cornerback last season, in the view of Pro Football Focus, which slotted him just outside the top 60 at the position in 2020. Douglas, 26, filled in for Eli Apple in Carolina. The Raiders initially agreed to terms with Apple in 2020, but the deal fell through. Injuries impeded Apple with the Panthers, who turned to Douglas for much of the season.
He represents the Raiders’ first outside investment at the position this offseason. Douglas will join former West Virginia teammate Karl Joseph in Vegas’ secondary; the Raiders brought back their 2016 first-round pick earlier this month.