Raiders ink former Patriot Andre Carter

The Oakland Raiders have signed defensive end Andre Carter, who had been a free agent at the start of the 2012 NFL regular season. Carter has made multiple trips to see the Raiders this offseason, but never inked a deal until Wednesday.

Carter should provide Oakland with much needed depth on the defensive line. The Raiders are currently starting Matt Shaughnessy and Lamarr Houston at defensive end. Carter will contend for a starting spot, but he could also come off the bench with Raider defenders like David Tollefson and Jack Crawford and try and become a regular in the Raider rotation.

Carter becomes an immediate contender for best pass rusher on the team, as he's piled up 76 sacks in 163 games as an NFL pro. Last year with New England, he piled up ten sacks for the Patriots to lead the team. Unfortunately, his season ended prematurely with a torn quadriceps tendon on the eve of the playoffs, and the Patriots chose not to re-sign him in the offseason. Oakland has only had three sacks the first three games of the season, so Carter could fill a great need for the Raiders.