Late in the preseason is often when NFL teams consider extending potential free agents offers in an attempt to secure them for the longterm and ending any question of the team’s commitment to the player.

If the Oakland Raiders are considering making such a move, they need to do so with Stefen Wisniewski.

Wisniewski is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent next March. As a second-round pick in 2011, he has developed into one of the Raiders’ most reliable players.

“He’s a good, young, tough player [who] should be extended and should be a building block,” ESPN scout Matt Williamson said. “He’s not an elite center, but he’s well above average.”

He’s the type of player teams keep around. If the Raiders were to let Wisniewski test free agency -- as they did with fellow young starters, Jared Veldheer and Lamarr Houston this year -- they’d be in danger of another team swooping in on him. That, of course, was what happened with Houston and Veldheer.

Keeping Wisniewski is a very achievable task for Oakland. He will command a solid contract but not a salary-cap killing deal. And, of course, Wisniewski is all Raider. He is the nephew of former Raiders’ superstar offensive lineman and coach Steve Wisniewski. In that 2011 draft, it was all but assumed that Lil Wiz was going to end up as a Raider. It’s only natural he remains one.