Raiders add to secondary with Karl Joseph

The Oakland Raiders have selected safety Karl Joseph out of West Virginia with the 14th overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft.

Following an offseason in which the Raiders made some significant upgrades throughout the roster, adding Joseph fills yet another need at the back end of the defense.

With outstanding physicality and some impressive sideline-to-sideline range, Joseph can be lined up at a number of different spots in the secondary.

He'll combine with veteran free-agent addition Reggie Nelson to solidify the safety position following Charles Woodson's retirement.

Karl Joseph Bio

Position: S
School: West Virginia
College Experience: Senior
Height: 5-10
Weight: 205 lbs.

Strengths

• Incredibly violent tackler, yet remains technically sound in bringing a ball carrier to the ground.
• Unmatched physicality makes him a tone-setter at the back end of the defense.
• Range and play-making ability gives him value as a free safety in the middle of the field.
• Quick to read the play and get downhill.
• Takes efficient angles to the ball both when working downhill and toward the sideline.
• Flashed ability as a playmaker with an impressive five interceptions in four games to start his senior season.

Weaknesses

• Still recovering from a torn ACL that brought his senior campaign to an end in October.
• Has a slightly undersized frame and consistently throws his body around, which will give some teams pause in regard to injury risk.
• Production in coverage was a question mark until the relatively small sample size that came with his senior year.

Combine Results

He didn't participate in combine or pro day due to ongoing recovery from injury.