Las Vegas Raiders sign LB Buddy Johnson

The Las Vegas Raiders' signing of Buddy Johnson earns a D+ Contract Value Index (CVI)—a below-average value proposition that reflects modest production anchored to a floor-price deal. At $1.145M on a one-year contract, Johnson lands in the deep replacement-level tier of the linebacker market, yet even at that bargain price point, the value exchange tilts unfavorably; the team is paying full freight for a depth piece with limited upside rather than capturing genuine surplus. The contract structure itself—a single year with no guaranteed dollars at that low AAV—insulates Las Vegas from long-term risk, but that safety valve also signals organizational skepticism about his ceiling; if Johnson were viewed as a rotational starter or reliable contributor, the deal would carry either a longer runway or more assurance. In a secondary linebacker market glutted with aging veterans and undersized prospects, a $1.145M annual commitment falls squarely into commodity pricing, meaning the Raiders are neither stealing value nor overpaying relative to the positional baseline—they're simply acquiring a body at a price that acknowledges his marginal role. The D+ verdict reflects that the contract is defensibly cheap in absolute terms but offers minimal on-field return to justify even a modest investment; it's a low-risk, low-reward add typical of preseason roster churn rather than a calculus that improves the team's linebacker room in a meaningful way.