With the Las Vegas Raiders‘ first preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings in the books, it’s time to update the Raiders’ projected 53-man roster.
Previously, Silver and Black Pride made predictions on who was and wasn’t making the cut ahead of training camp. Those projections will be listed below as well. If a player’s status has changed, their name will be listed in bold. Also included will be a ‘(B)’ after specific players to signify that he is on the roster bubble and those players can fall into either the ‘Roster’ or ‘Cut’ categories.
Quarterback
Previously: Roster: Aidan O’Connell, Gardner Minshew, Anthony Brown Jr.
Cut: Carter Bradley
Roster: Aidan O’Connell, Gardner Minshew, Anthony Brown Jr. (B)
Cut: Carter Bradley (B)
There are no changes here as Bradley barely played and Brown was behind an offensive line that barely gave him enough time to receive the snap, let alone get a quality pass off. It still makes the most sense for the Raiders to roster three quarterbacks to take advantage of the emergency quarterback rule and keep the undrafted free agent on the practice squad.
Running Back
Previously: Roster: Zamir White, Alexander Mattison, Ameer Abdullah, Dylan Laube
Cut: Brittain Brown, Sincere McCormick
Roster: Zamir White, Alexander Mattison, Ameer Abdullah (B), Dylan Laube
Cut: Brittain Brown, Sincere McCormick (B)
The second position in a row where there are no changes from the last time, but McCormick might have at least pulled ahead of Brown. The former received more snaps—12 to four—and forced a couple of missed tackles while ripping off a 17-yard run on Saturday. That’s not enough to take a roster spot away from one of the top four but does help build some momentum to stick around on the practice squad.
Wide Receiver
Previously: Roster: Davante Adams, Jakobi Meyers, Tre Tucker, Michael Gallup, Tulu Griffin
Cut: DJ Turner, Jalen Guyton, Kristian Wilkerson, Tyreik McAllister, Alex Bachman, Jeff Foreman, Ramel Keyton
Roster: Davante Adams, Jakobi Meyers, Tre Tucker, DJ Turner (B), Kristian Wilkerson (B)
Cut: Michael Gallup (retired), Tulu Griffin (B), Jalen Guyton (B), Ramel Keyton (B), Tyreik McAllister, Alex Bachman, Jeff Foreman, Dax Milne (B), Keelan Doss, Terrell Bynum
There are a few changes here as Gallup hanging ‘em up and Griffin missing practice throws the wide receiver room for a bit of a loop. Turner had a good showing in Minnesota, highlighted by a 20-yard touchdown grab, and he can factor into the return game. The latter is what gives him the nod over Guyton at the moment. Meanwhile, Wilkerson benefits the most from Gallup’s retirement as a backup outside receiver option.
Tight End
Previously: Roster: Brock Bowers, Michael Mayer, Harrison Bryant, John Samuel Shenker
Cut: Zach Gentry, Cole Fotheringham
Roster: Brock Bowers, Michael Mayer, Harrison Bryant, Cole Fotheringham (B)
Cut: Zach Gentry (B), John Samuel Shenker (B)
How many tight ends Las Vegas keeps is still a question mark, but Fotheringham seems to have the slight edge right now if the team rosters four. He got a couple of snaps at fullback this weekend and contributed on special teams to potentially earn that fourth spot.
Offensive Line
Previously: Roster: Kolton Miller, Jackson Powers-Johnson, Andre James, Dylan Parham, Thayer Munford Jr., DJ Glaze, Andrus Peat, Cody Whitehair, Dalton Wagner
Cut: Jordan Meredith, Jalen McKenzie, Clark Barrington, Will Putnam, Ben Brown, Andrew Coker, Jake Johanning
Roster: Kolton Miller, Jackson-Powers Johnson, Andre James, Dylan Parham, Thayer Munford Jr., DJ Glaze, Andrus Peat, Cody Whitehair, Jordan Meredith (B)
Cut: Dalton Wagner (B), Ben Brown (B), Jalen McKenzie, Corey Luciano, Will Putnam, Clark Barrington, Andrew Coker
Meredith had one of the better performances on the Raiders’ second-string offensive line against the Vikings to move up the rankings. Meanwhile, Wagner posted an ugly 29.5 run-blocking grade from Pro Football Focus. Overall, there aren’t too many battles going on here.
Defensive Line
Previously: Roster: Maxx Crosby, Christian Wilkins, John Jenkins, Malcolm Koonce, Tyree Wilson, Janarius Robinson, Adam Butler, Elerson Smith, Nesta Jade Silvera, Marquan McCall
Cut: Byron Young, Matthew Butler, Charles Snowden, David Agoha (IPP), Tomari Fox, Ron Stone Jr., TJ Franklin, Noah Shannon
Roster: Maxx Crosby, Christian Wilkins, John Jenkins, Malcolm Koonce, Tyree Wilson, Janarius Robinson (B), Adam Butler, Elerson Smith (B), Byron Young (B), Nesta Jade Silvera (B)
Cut: Marquan McCall (B), Matthew Butler (B), Charles Snowden, David Agoha (IPP), Tomari Fox (IR), Ron Stone Jr., TJ Franklin, Noah Shannon
The defensive line is another position group where how many players the coaching staff decides to roster plays a big factor. The big change here is flipping Young and McCall since Young was reportedly filling in for Jenkins at the beginning of camp and playing well. However, the second-year pro struggled in Saturday’s preseason game, keeping him on the roster bubble.
Linebackers
Previously: Roster: Robert Spillane, Divine Deablo, Tommy Eichenberg, Luke Masterson, Kana’i Mauga
Cut: Darien Butler, Amari Burney, Amari Gainer
Roster: Robert Spillane, Divine Deablo, Tommy Eichenberg, Luke Masterson (B), Kana’i Mauga (B)
Cut: Darien Butler (IR), Amari Burney (B), Amari Gainer (B)
While there are no changes at linebacker, Burney and Gainer gave Las Vegas’ coaches something to think about with how they played on Saturday. The former showed a lot of growth as a run defender while the latter was excellent in coverage and both contributed on special teams. It’s still not enough to put them on the roster at this stage, but another strong outing this coming weekend will be hard to ignore.
Cornerback
Previously: Roster: Jack Jones, Nate Hobbs, Jakorian Bennett, Brandon Facyson, Decamerion Richardson, M.J. Devonshire
Cut: Sam Webb, Cornell Armstrong, Woo Governor, Ja’Quan Sheppard
Roster: Jack Jones, Nate Hobbs, Jakorian Bennett, Brandon Facyson (B), Decamerion Richardson, M.J. Devonshire (B)
Cut: Sam Webb (B), Woo Governor (B), Cornell Armstrong, Ja’Quan Sheppard, Rayshad Williams
Devonshire didn’t do himself any favors by giving up a 45-yard touchdown against the Vikings, but none of the other cornerbacks on the bubble were standouts to unseat him. Las Vegas is thin and young at corner so don’t be surprised if someone gets added to the position group before camp is over.
Safety
Previously: Roster: Tre’von Moehrig, Marcus Epps, Isaiah Pola-Mao, Chris Smith II
Cut: Trey Taylor, Jaydon Grant, Phalen Sanford
Roster: Tre’von Moehrig, Marcus Epps, Isaiah Pola-Mao, Chris Smith II (B)
Cut: Trey Taylor (B), Jaydon Grant, Phalen Sanford
It’s a matter of making the math work out, meaning one of the positions above carries one less player than the current projections, but it wouldn’t be surprising at all to see Taylor make the final roster. That being said, Smith had the better performance in Minnesota, making a couple of tackles and a defensive stop to earn a 69.8 grade from PFF. Meanwhile, Taylor posted a mark of 52.7 and gave up a couple of completions in coverage.