GLENDALE, Ariz. - If the Raiders coaching staff was in search of a grand statement from someone on the fringe of making the 53-man roster, it’s safe to say they didn’t quite get what they were looking for in Saturday’s finale against the Cardinals. Aside from an injured backup quarterback and one more brief look at the starters, there wasn’t much to write home about from the 20-10 loss in Arizona.
The first-team offense did manage to impress on its lone drive, as Geno Smith led the team on a nine-play, 60-yard touchdown drive capped off by a crafty 17-yard touchdown reception by standout fourth-round rookie Donte Thornton. Thornton’s emergence as the probable WR3 over second-round pick Jack Bech has been one of the more interesting developments in camp and it’s hard to believe a play like the one he made on Saturday did anything to hurt those chances.
Geno Smith to Dont'e Thornton Jr. for the @raiders TD!
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Smith finished with 26 yards and a touchdown, completing 2-of-3 pass attempts. Ashton Jeanty took just two carries, gaining five yards before he was shut down for the evening.
The Raiders’ quarterback plan was thrown into a wrench from that point, as Aidan O’Connell suffered a wrist injury while being strip-sacked on the team’s second possession. Aside from the injury, it was also O’Connell’s fourth turnover in three preseason games. Third-stringer Cam Miller was left with the remainder of the reps, but he did little to prove that there’s any reason besides O’Connell’s own incompetence to promote him to the backup role. Miller completed 12-of-24 passes for 102 yards, good for just 4.3 yards per attempt.
Running backs Zamir White and Raheem Mostert each got a fair share of carries after Jeanty’s night ended. White finished with 42 yards on nine carries, while Mostert added 32 yards on nine carries himself.
Clayton Tune, the Cardinals' 2023 fifth-round draft pick out of Tulane, got the full-game assignment for the host in Saturday’s finale. Tune completed 12-of-20 passes for 83 yards and a touchdown.
Running back Bam Knight was the team’s top offensive performer, recording 83 yards on just five carries, most of which came on a 67-yard touchdown run. Michael Carter also averaged double-digit yards per carry out of the Cardinals’ backfield on Saturday, tallying 46 yards on four carries. As a team, Arizona ran for 210 yards.
Pete Carroll and company are now tasked with diverting their full attention to the Sept. 7 opener against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, MA.