Las Vegas Raiders offensive tackle Brandon Parker was selected in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft to be a long-term starter for the organization.
It now appears that his career with the Raiders could be over. Las Vegas announced that Parker has been played on injured reserve after going down during joint practices with the San Francisco 49ers last week.
The extent or type of injury is not yet known. But given the fact that he was placed on IR ahead of final roster cuts, the 27-year-old Parker will miss the entire 2023 campaign. It’s the second consecutive campaign the North Carolina A&T will miss.
The Raiders’ former brass of head coach Jon Gruden and general manager Mike Mayock selected Parker in the third round back in 2018. It came a couple rounds after fellow tackle Kolton Miller was picked up by the Raiders. The two did act as bookends in their first season with Parker starting 12 games at right tackle and Miller protecting then-quarterback Derek Carr’s blindside for all 16 games.
Struggles were then the name of the game for Parker. He started a combined seven games in 2019 and 2020 before struggling in a full-time role (13 starts) in 2021. Parker had re-signed with the Raiders this past offseason.
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Las Vegas Raiders lose depth in Brandon Parker injury
The good news for Vegas is that it was not relying on Parker to be a starter heading into the 2023 season. His one-year deal came in at $1.25 million with a mere $475,000 guaranteed.
Miller is slated to start at left tackle in front of new quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. Veteran Jermaine Eluemunor is penciled in at right tackle with second-year player Thayer Munford potentially set to challenge him. At left tackle, former New England Patriots draft pick Justin Herron seems to be a good bet to back up Miller.
Even then, losing a depth piece for the season could force Las Vegas to look outside of the organization for some veteran help.
As for Brandon Miller, this is yet another major blow in what was a once-promising career.