Many NFL teams used Week 2 of the preseason as a dress rehearsal for the regular season. Though the Las Vegas Raiders left a majority of their starters at home, they can take a lot (good and bad) from a 15-13 win over the Miami Dolphins Saturday.
Unlike the Raiders, Miami fielded several starters, including quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, but overall, the Silver and Black fared well despite an uptick in the level of competition.
Following Vegas’ third exhibition game, some of the team’s weaknesses raise legitimate concerns. On the flip side, fans should also feel reassured by the club’s strengths in specific areas.
Let’s break down signs of optimism and the biggest concerns after three preseason games.
Related: Key takeaways from Las Vegas Raiders win over the Miami Dolphins
Optimism: Las Vegas Raiders’ disciplined habits
Let’s start out with a big-picture overview of the team, which is arguably the biggest positive through the preseason. Thus far, under new head coach Josh McDaniels, the Raiders have played disciplined football with few mistakes in each exhibition game:
Though we’ve seen a few close calls with botched snaps and fumble recoveries, the Raiders haven’t turned the ball over in any contest, and their penalty count has dropped each week.
Raider fans have become accustomed to the referees tossing yellow laundry on the field for clear and questionable errors, but that hasn’t been the case this month.
During this past offseason, McDaniels emphasized detail, focus and accountability. Clearly, his message has translated to relatively clean performances in game situations. Now, the players have to carry that mentality over to the regular season.
Related: Las Vegas Raiders schedule and game-by-game predictions
Concern: Pass protection (especially on the right side)
After Saturday’s contest, right tackle Alex Leatherwood took the brunt of the criticism for an atrocious pass-blocking performance for the entire offensive line. But he’s not the only one who struggled against some of the Dolphins’ starters.
Per Pro Football Focus, check out the pressures allowed among four potential starting offensive linemen minus left tackle Kolton Miller, who didn’t play Saturday.
RT Alex Leatherwood: allowed five pressures in 42 snaps
LG John Simpson: allowed three pressures in 31 snaps
RG Lester Cotton: allowed two pressures in 31 snaps
C Andre James: allowed two pressures in 18 snaps
The Raiders’ coaching staff should be alarmed by those numbers with Khalil Mack and Joey Bosa coming up in Week 1.
Through the first two games, Simpson, James and Cotton looked up to the task in pass protection, but they all faltered Saturday. In two particular plays, Leatherwood simply looked lost against Porter Gustin (No. 96) and overmatched when he went toe-to-toe with John Jenkins (No. 90):
As a former first-round pick, Leatherwood’s mistakes stand out like an eyesore, and he hasn’t looked more than OK in any of these preseason games. Simpson, James and Cotton had a bad outing, but Leatherwood has had a rocky summer.
Unless general manager Dave Ziegler has his eyes on a tackle who may be available after the second or final round of roster cuts, Jermaine Eluemunor looks like the clear-cut best option at right tackle with Brandon Parker and Thayer Munford Jr. dealing with injuries.
Eluemunor didn’t allow a single pressure while playing both tackle positions Saturday, per PFF.
Related: Alex Leatherwood looks like a bust, creating issues for the Las Vegas Raiders
Concern: Clelin Ferrell’s extended absence
Where’s Clelin Ferrell?
The Athletic’s Tashan Reed noted that Ferrell has missed every practice since July 30. He’s battled an undisclosed injury for nearly three weeks, which is a bummer for him because the No. 4 overall pick from the 2019 draft needed the reps for a restart under new defensive coordinator Patrick Graham.
Ferrell projected as a versatile player in Graham’s scheme who can float between the interior of the defensive line and the edge, but his inability to stay healthy raises concerns about his status with the team.
Owed about $10 million in dead money this year, Ferrell isn’t an ideal cut candidate, but the Raiders can agree to pay a portion of his salary in a trade. With that said, no team will likely make that agreement because he’s trended in the wrong direction since his rookie year.
Without a snap in the preseason or significant training camp reps, Ferrell already looks lost with the new regime. Vegas can place him on injured reserve after final cuts, which would sideline him for at least four weeks into the regular season. After that point, the coaching can slowly add him to the mix within the front seven.
Related: Las Vegas Raiders’ standing among NFL defenses
Optimism: Patrick Graham’s early plan for Johnathan Abram
Juxtaposed to Ferrell, Johnathan Abram falls on the positive side for the Raiders’ 2019 first-round picks.
Graham may get more out of Abram than previous defensive coordinators, Gus Bradley and Paul Guenther.
Guenther’s method of coaching the defense didn’t work for the majority of the players on the roster between 2018 and 2020. Bradley remained reluctant to blitz, which limited Abram’s impact on games.
By now, we all know that Abram plays best with the action in front of him as a hard-hitting box safety at or near the line of scrimmage. On Saturday, he forced the quarterback into bad decisions with a couple of pressures, broke up a pass and logged two tackles.
If Abram can drop his missed tackle rate below 10 percent (it’s been at or above 10.8 percent in all three of his seasons), he can make a notable mark on the Raiders defense. Though for now, Graham’s scheme seems like a good fit for Abram’s skill set.
Related: Las Vegas Raiders standing in Sportsnaut’s most-recent NFL power rankings
Concern: Lack of depth on interior of the defensive line
Johnathan Hankins’ return made a huge difference up front against the run. He made stops on consecutive downs and looked regular-season ready.
After the Minnesota Vikings gashed the Raiders’ run defense for 115 yards (5.2 yards per carry) last week, the unit only gave up 37 yards (2.1 yards per carry) to a Dolphins’ rushing attack that’s struggled in both of its preseason outings.
On one hand, we can look at Hankins’ performance from a glass-half-full perspective, but the Raiders cannot depend on one man to shore up their defensive front.
Hankins’ defensive snap count has dipped a little bit in all three of his seasons with the Silver and Black. In 2021, he missed three games and lined up for 58 percent of the defensive plays. Bilal Nichols didn’t play Saturday, but Vegas needs rookie fourth-rounder Neil Farrell Jr. to show a little more in the coming weeks. If not, Kyle Peko or Andrew Billings must provide a little more consistency against the run.
If free-agent defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh doesn’t see offers that satisfy him, he would be an ideal pickup at the price of about $6-7 million.
Related: Dana White says Tom Brady to the Las Vegas Raiders was done before Jon Gruden blew the deal up
Optimism: Underrated depth on the edge
The Raiders seem a bit thin on the interior of the defensive line, but they may have some unheralded gems on the edge in Malcolm Koonce and Tashawn Bower.
As a third-round pick from the 2021 draft, Koonce had a couple of flashes last year, logging a sack in consecutive games between Weeks 13 and 14. He’s had one of the best preseason showings among the team’s defensive players.
Bower may be the only player to top Koonce in terms of overall impact on the defense in this year’s exhibition games. He’s recorded eight tackles, four for loss, two sacks and six hurries through three outings, per Pro Football Focus.
Out of nowhere, Bower looks like a roster keeper. He played with the New England Patriots throughout the 2020 season and into the 2021 campaign before the Vikings signed him off the AFC East club’s practice squad last November.
Against the Dolphins, Bower raised his stock with his most productive preseason outing. He has a good shot to earn a roster spot after outside linebacker Jordan Jenkins tore his ACL Saturday, per Pro Football Network’s Aaron Wilson. The Raiders placed him on injured reserve Sunday.
Thus far, Koonce and Bower have taken full advantage of their summer reps as the potential backups to Maxx Crosby and Chandler Jones on the edge.
Maurice Moton covers the Raiders for Sportsnaut. You can follow him on Twitter at @MoeMoton.