Concern meter: Assessing the situation at Raiders' trouble spots

The Raiders’ initial 53-man roster is now set, and it’s not without some surprises.

No one projected the inclusion of quarterback Kenny Pickett and wide receiver Amari Cooper ahead of time, for instance, considering they were both acquired a day before squads were due for all 32 NFL teams earlier this week.

A few other choices stood out at the end of the roster like the cuts of safety Terrell Edmunds and quarterback Cam Miller — both of whom were signed to the practice squad — and the keeps off linebacker Cody Lindenberg and center Will Putnam.  

But, for as much that’s changed in the details, more has stayed the same in the bigger picture. The positional concerns for Las Vegas coming into training camp are still present going into its Sept. 7 opener at the New England Patriots.

Do they have the offensive linemen, wide receivers, defensive tackles, linebackers and cornerbacks to make a playoff push?

Let’s go through where each position group stands below and assign a level of concern to each of them.

Offensive line

General manager John Spytek and head coach Pete Carroll talked up their returning offensive line all offseason, and now their vision is finally becoming apparent.  

The unit looked outstanding down the stretch of training camp and in limited action over the final two preseason games. Carroll mixed up combinations frequently early on — especially in the interior — but he seems to have landed on the ideal five starters with left tackle Kolton Miller, left guard Dylan Parham, center Jordan Meredith, right guard Jackson Powers-Johnson and right tackle D.J. Glaze.

Having Meredith beat out Alex Cappa, who’s statistically been one of the worst starting offensive linemen in the NFL over the last two seasons and is now out with a rib injury, for a spot was paramount. Shifting Powers-Johnson from center to guard, presumably against his own preference, also feels like the right move.

Guard is becoming increasingly important in modern NFL offenses, and Powers-Johnson is a Pro Bowl upside blocker.  

With the way these five have played lately, there’s no longer anything standing in the way of rookie running back Ashton Jeanty becoming the Day 1 difference-maker the Raiders are counting on.   

Concern level: Little to none

Wide receiver

Jakobi Meyers is one of the most underrated players in the league — he became the first receiver in 25 years with no drops on more than 100 targets last season — but he's still a lower-end No. 1 receiver.

Good thing he’s No. 1 receiver in name only for the Raiders, as tight end Brock Bowers is the true focal point of the team’s passing game. The Raiders still badly need Meyers though, and that’s why news of his trade request earlier this week were so alarming.

Meyers and Geno Smith have developed a strong rapport and look like a natural match given the former’s precise route-running and the latter’s pinpoint accuracy on short throws.

Other receivers, namely rookie big-play threat Dont’e Thornton and gadget speedster Tre Tucker, have flashed at times, but none are as consistent as Meyers. Depth is also an issue: Rookie Jack Bech was the only other receiver to make the roster from the training camp with Cooper joining after the fact.

The 31-year-old Cooper didn’t work out for Buffalo over the second half of last year, but maybe coming back to his original franchise will spark something. It’s a gamble worth taking, but he’s not on Meyers’ level anymore.

Las Vegas fans must therefore hope the relationship between the franchise and Meyers doesn’t become irreparable.  

Concern level: Minor

Interior defensive line

The dreams the Raiders had of fielding one of the best defensive lines in the league after signing Christian Wilkins to a mega-contract last offseason died quickly.

Wilkins played only five underwhelming games last season before suffering a Jones fracture in his foot and ultimately being released in dramatic fashion earlier in this year’s training camp. But the Raiders were preparing to play without him this season anyway given the complications in his recovery.

It’s not like they didn’t have a backup plan or, more specifically, several potential backup plans. Adam Butler is entrenched as one starting defensive tackle and more than capable, so the question becomes who emerges as his primary partner.

A rotation of Jonah Laulu, Thomas Booker, Tonka Hemingway, JJ Pegues and Leki Fotu is the immediate plan.

The coaches have raved about Laulu’s offseason while Booker has looked strong in his short time since coming over via trade with the Eagles. The rookies Hemingway and Pegues regularly outplayed their fourth- and sixth-round draft slots, respectively, in training camp and the preseason.

Fotu is the most experienced of the bunch after being a longtime starter with the Arizona Cardinals. Chances are a player or two in that group will break out during the season and wreak havoc on opposing offenses.

Concern level: Minor

Linebackers

This might have been one of the best and most star-studded linebacker groups in the league five or six years ago. Unfortunately for the Raiders, the NFL moves fast and players age out of their primes rapidly, especially when major injuries take their toll.

The career peak is likely behind for all four of the Raiders’ top linebackers — Elandon Roberts, Devin White, Germaine Pratt and Jamal Adams. The 31-year-old Roberts is the only the one who hasn’t exhibited any real decline in recent seasons and, in fairness, the Raiders are relying on most on him at the position.

But they can’t afford for White, Pratt and Adams to all continue their declines. They need a resurgence from at least one of them or, ideally, multiple to avoid the middle of the field being a weakness on defense.   

Opponents figure to particularly pick on this group in the pass game, as none of these linebackers grade out well in coverage historically. Either Lindenberg, Tommy Eichenberg or Brennan Jackson could conceivably break into the rotation, but it’s unlikely to happen right away.

The first two young players had mediocre-at-best training camps while the Raiders just claimed Jackson off waivers from the Los Angeles Rams.   

Concern level: Real

Cornerbacks

The Green Bay Packers declined Eric Stokes’ fifth-year rookie option and dropped him from a starting spot last season. Fans labeled him a first-round bust.

Now he’s the Raiders’ No. 1 cornerback with no one else in training camp even coming close to unseating him.

Stokes allowed several completions in the preseason, not quelling fears that the Raiders’ pass defense might be a real problem. The other outside starting spot was more contested, but rookie Darien Porter came out on top in the competition after late-riser Kyu Blu Kelly saw a hamstring injury flare up last week.

Las Vegas is so thin at nickelback that it’s mostly taken Jeremy Chinn away from his more natural strong safety spot to play the position.

The last two cornerbacks on the roster, Decamerion Richardson and Darnay Holmes, both played poorly last year and struggled late in training camp.  

Chinn is a proven playmaker while Porter’s potential is vast. Carroll clearly sees something in Stokes.

The veteran coach has been one of the league’s great all-time developers of defensive backs, and his magic will need to be as potent as ever with this year’s set.

Concern level: Major