Raiders quarterback competition begins, TE Impressive is Michael Mayer: Ten OTA observations
HENDERSON, Nevada Vegas During the first organized team activity practice under coach Antonio Pierce on Monday, Raiders quarterbacks Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew started to battle for the starting job, but reporters were not permitted to watch that practice. This meant that Tuesday was their first public practice. The first-team reps were divided pretty evenly.
Though O’Connell was more accurate and took better care of the football, neither passer set the world on fire. In a seven-on-seven red zone drill, he had the throw of the day when he found tight end Michael Mayer by firing a pass over the middle between defenders for a touchdown. Minshew will need to further distance himself in order to succeed O’Connell, but it’s far too soon to give anything definitive a read. That battle will be the most crucial to watch as the Raiders intensify their preparations for the 2024 campaign.
The Raiders will have seven more open practices in the upcoming weeks before their required minicamp, which takes place from June 11–13. They will take a break until late July to attend training camp in Costa Mesa, California.
Nine additional observations from Tuesday’s practice are listed below:
1. On Tuesday, 78 players participated for the Raiders. The following 12 players did not practice: linebacker Darien Butler, cornerback Jack Jones, offensive tackle Kolton Miller, defensive end Ron Stone Jr., defensive tackles Matthew Butler and Nesta Jade Silvera, running backs Zamir White and Ameer Abdullah, and receivers Davante Adams, Michael Gallup, Jalen Guyton, and Tulu Griffin.
Miller, who battled a shoulder injury last season and appeared to be in the midst of recovering, was working with trainers on the sidelines during practice. Though the remaining 11 absences’ causes are unknown, it’s crucial to keep in mind that OTAs are currently optional.
2. Mayer expressed no disagreement with the Raiders’ choice to select Brock Bowers, a fellow tight end, in the first round of last month’s draft. When the Raiders selected Mayer in the second round of the previous season, he appeared to be the starting tight end of the future, but Bowers’ arrival altered that.
Mayer stated, “It is what it is.” “It is completely beyond my control. I’ve already moved on from it.
To get Mayer and Bowers on the field, the Raiders will employ a full complement of 12 players, including two tight ends, two receivers, and a running back. Nevertheless, Bowers’ versatility means that in looks involving just one tight end, he’ll probably take most of the snaps. Mayer is embracing the dynamic rather than being upset about it. After sustaining a toe injury the previous year, he’s recovered completely, shed ten pounds, increased his speed, and generally improved his attitude.
Mayer remarked, “It’s just different this year.” “I feel so much better. I have a lot more optimism. Maybe there were a few days last year that I didn’t want to come in. I changed the storyline. When questioned about whether Josh McDaniels’ replacement as head coach, Pierce, was
Mayer will still get a lot of playing time because he can line up as an outside receiver or tight end and is a better blocker than Bowers. The Raiders are optimistic that Mayer and Bowers together will increase the offense’s overall adaptability, unpredictable nature, and explosiveness.
3. Right tackle Thayer Munford has cemented himself as the starting option. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that he didn’t alter his starting lineup during practice, given that DJ Glaze, a rookie, is the only true competitor on the team. Munford has never been a full-time starter, despite making multiple starts at left tackle and right tackle in his first two years in the league. He used to have confidence issues, but that is no longer the case. He thinks he is more than capable.
“The difference between my first and second year and now is like night and day,” Munford remarked. “At this point, I’m thinking, ‘Okay, I know I can play.'” Now all I have to do is reach my potential and follow through on it.
4. Tom McMahon, the special teams coordinator, is enthusiastic about the kickoff rule change’s accompanying strategy, which is anticipated to greatly boost the quantity of kickoff returns. He thinks there will be more opportunities to influence the field as a result. Pierce has given McMahon more practice time to help him adjust to the significant change.
McMahon stated that preparation is ultimately what matters. “I’ll be honest with you; they’re not at their current position right now. That was our initial plan when we started the offseason program. And I adore that section. I pick up knowledge from the players. They’ll approach and say something like, “Hey, Tom, don’t put us here.” Bring us in here. We are able to reach these balls.
5. At cornerback, Brandon Facyson and Jakorian Bennett are leading the position battle. The other outside cornerback spot is up for grabs, but the Raiders have two established starting cornerbacks in nickelback Nate Hobbs and outside Jack Jones.
Bennett and Facyson are currently fighting for position, but rookies Decamerion Richardson and M.J. Devonshire might make an appearance later on. It’s difficult to determine who is in the starting lineup because both of them played with the first team defense on Tuesday despite Jones missing practice.
6. Tyree Wilson is making progress, but he still trails Malcolm Koonce and Maxx Crosby in the depth chart. Towards the end of the previous season, the Raiders frequently moved the second-year defensive end inside to defensive tackle, which helped him expand his skill set. Wilson claimed that it enhanced his hand usage, decreased the amount of thinking he had to do, and sharpened his ability to notice things before they snapped.
Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham explained, “It teaches them to use their hands because they’re dealing with a more immediate block from the guard or the center.” “I felt Tyree’s development really depended on that.”
Wilson was still recovering from foot surgery that ended his final season at Texas Tech during the previous offseason. For the most part of this offseason, Wilson returned home to Texas, but he was not idle. He put in a lot of work as a personal trainer.
“I went back home and just worked on the eating habits, worked on the get-off and worked on me,” Wilson said.
Crosby has taken Wilson under his wing to help bring him along. After a humbling rookie season in which he fell well short of expectations, Wilson has been all ears.
“Coming in from college, you think you’ve got everything figured out, but this year I just slowed back down,” Wilson said. “I started taking the coaching and just come out here and work.”
7. Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy plans to be more flexible. A large part of his downfall when he held the same role with the Chicago Bears was his inability to adjust to the skill sets of his players, injuries and opponents’ game plans. He has internalized that lesson and is aiming to avoid similar mistakes with the Raiders.
“There’s certain things that are non-negotiable in your play style and in the mindset that you want to bring no matter what,” Getsy said. “The most important thing is finding a way to maximize the type of guy that you have and figuring out what they do well. That’s the phase that we’re in right now.”
