After joint practices with the Houston Texans on Tuesday, the Las Vegas Raiders are hoping that the lessons they took away translate onto the football field.
On Thursday, the Raiders and Texans will square off for the second of three preseason tilts for Las Vegas, and they will hope for some significant improvements this time around.
Venue: Reliant Stadium, Houston, TX
Date: Thursday, August 20
Time: 5:00 pm PST
How To Watch: ESPN, FOX5
Radio: 920 AM, 92.3 FM
Between the weeks of training camp in Henderson, the first preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals and this recent stretch in the Lone Star State, the Raiders have taken valuable lessons with them at every turn. As Week One against the Miami Dolphins draws near, the opportunities to implement meaningful changes are beginning to grow scarce. Against one of the better team in the league, especially on the defensive side of the ball, the Raiders will find out more about themselves when they hop on the return flight to Las Vegas.
“I think it's good to get work in a different environment, against a different unit, against a little bit different scheme,” said quarterback Kirk Cousins. “Have to see something different, and I thought we got a lot out of it.”
Opportunities aplenty
With the Texans already saying that they intend to rest some of their starters, the Raiders will get a chance to establish a rhythm and build off of it.
The first-team offense had an up-and-down performance in the joint practice, while the defense has already been earmarked for improvement (more on that later). Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak has been adamant that there is a plan for how many reps players will get, but he is obviously thinking with the bigger picture in mind. It would be a surprise if the starters got any more than a series or two to get some work on, but there is value in giving younger players the opportunity to face off against the best another team has to offer.
"I wanted to see him going against the Texans' ones. That was our plan all along,” said Kubiak after putting Fernando Mendoza against Houston’s first-team defense on Tuesday.
“I thought he did some good things. I look forward to watching the tape. He and his teammates, all these young guys that were playing, we got to get them up to speed real quick."
Young blood
In the last game against the Cardinals, some of the younger players on offense impressed the Raiders fans in attendance.
In that game, Mendoza made a few rookie mistakes, but showed great poise in his lone scoring drive. Sophomore wide receiver Jack Bech and rookies Malik Benson and Mike Washington Jr. also created positive first impressions for themselves, while guard Caleb Rogers will get an opportunity to create separation in the battle for the right guard spot with Jackson Powers-Johnson due to Kubiak stating that he does not expect the latter to play. The Raiders have taken great care in evaluating their younger players, and another preseason game could be enough to lock down spots on the 53-man roster for some.
I'm really excited for this upcoming game and all the opportunities that I have in the future,” said Mendoza on Tuesday.
“Whether it was the opportunity today, and then the next opportunity will be Thursday. Then we have practice. Then we have the Niners. Every opportunity forward, I'm trying to capitalize on."
Lock it down
If there is one area that the Raiders will be eager to take a look at, it will be how the defense responds after a difficult outing against Arizona.
First-year defensive coordinator Rob Leonard will be tasked with getting his group’s confidence level up. While the linebackers did play well, the Raiders need to see more pressure from their veteran defensive line players, as well as a younger secondary to showcase the playmaking skills they have flashed throughout camp. Perfection is still not exactly an attainable goal, but drastic improvements from last week will assuage many of Raider Nation’s more pressing concerns.
“It's really good for us,” said safety Jeremy Chinn about testing the defense against a playoff team.
“That's a really good team to kind of see where we are in this exact moment. I mean, it's great experience for the young guys and the older guys as well."