After months of patiently waiting, the day Raider Nation has circled on their calendars is now mere hours away.
On Sunday, the Las Vegas Raiders return after eight months away, desperate to turn the page and get the new season started against the Miami Dolphins.
Venue: Allegiant Stadium, Paradise, NV
Date: Sunday, September 13
Time: 1:25 pm PST
How To Watch: FOX5
Radio: 1340 AM, 94.7 FM
The Raiders and Dolphins enter this matchup in two different stages of their rebuilds. While the Dolphins spent the summer taking a hatchet to their roster and hoping the youth can create a future core, the Raiders invested in building through free agency and the draft. With two teams operating under different philosophies colliding, this game serves as the perfect litmus test for both teams to notice the successes and flaws in their planning.
“Really excited about this Sunday,” said Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak to start his press conference on Friday. “Excited about being in front of our fans, in front of the Silver and Black, in front of the Black Hole.”
Soul for a soul
Throughout the week, Raiders fans were (rightfully) hyper-focused on the health of Ashton Jeanty, only to be blindsided by the update on Brock Bowers.
While Jeanty returned to practice and appears to be trending towards being available Week One, Bowers’s recovery from his meniscus trim means he will be out for this game, and his status for next week against the Los Angeles Chargers is also in question. Suddenly, the offense is going to have to manage a shift in both aspects, as two players who were relied upon to serve as leaders during this transition period are operating at less than 100 percent. It will only take one game for Raiders fans to see how Kubiak manages to balance the current situation, especially in order to avoid aggravating any injuries further.
“It all happened pretty quick,” said Kubiak about the timeline of Bowers’s injury, but referring to him as “a champion” during his recovery. “I don’t remember exactly what day, but he got it cleaned up and we’ll get him back soon.”
Target share
With Bowers out, the Raiders now find themselves with the challenge of spacing out even more targets instead of having the ability to funnel them towards one of the more reliable receiving weapons in the NFL.
Michael Mayer and Ian Thomas will get extended playing time, but the rest of the receiving options will be in line for looks. While the likes of Tre Tucker and Jalen Nailor are known quantities, this serves as a near-perfect evaluation period for young players like Jack Bech, Malik Benson and Mike Washington Jr. to see just how valuable of options they can be in the receiving game. A strong performance against the Dolphins would create an excellent case for more targets, even when Bowers returns to the field.
“That’s the NFL,” said Kubiak on the new situation. “Every week, there’s new guys in and out of the lineup, and that means opportunity for the guys that step up. We have young guys that have been given a tremendous opportunity.”
Manage the speed
While the Dolphins offense revolves primarily around youth, the main play drivers in the backfield are well-documented.
Running back De’Von Achane has emerged as one of the fastest players in the NFL, and the new coaching staff will likely be looking to find ways to get him in space to activate that game-breaking speed. Meanwhile, new quarterback Malik Willis may be getting his first true audition as a starting quarterback in the league, but he clearly impressed new head coach Jeff Hafley last season with the Green Bay Packers with his dual-threat capabilities. Maxx Crosby and a revamped Raiders defensive line will have their hands full in keeping both players contained, and it could spell trouble for the team in general if they cannot find a way to disrupt the tempo of the Miami offense.
“He’s their prime player,” said Raiders edge rusher Kwity Paye on Achane. “We have to go in and take care of him, and just handle the rest.”
Trench warfare
After the offensive line struggled throughout last season for the Raiders, general manager John Spytek invested heavily in the trenches.
Center Tyler Linderbaum and guard Spencer Burford arrived in free agency, while the team drafted utility offensive lineman Trey Zuhn in the third round. Meanwhile, the Dolphins boast an underrated defensive line headlined by Zach Sieler and Chop Robinson. While Kirk Cousins has the veteran wherewithal to make up for any sudden pressure, the Raiders will want to ensure that they have built a unit that can stand up to opposing defenses regularly.
This includes Jackson Powers-Johnson, who was named the starter at right guard for Week One, but is still in a competition with Caleb Rogers to keep the job.
“I still see Jackson, I still see Caleb as starters that are gonna play a lot of football for us,” said Kubiak about the state of the right guard competition.
Youth vs youth
Among the most intriguing matchups this week consists of two groups largely comprised of younger players.
Many of Miami’s top receiving options are rookies, including three wide receivers (Caleb Douglas, Chris Bell, Kevin Coleman) and the backup tight end (Will Kacmarek). Meanwhile, while the Raiders secondary has veteran presences like Eric Stokes and Jeremy Chinn for leadership, second-round rookie Treydan Stukes and sophomore cornerback Darien Porter ate expected to start, while it is also possible to see rookie corners Hezekiah Masses and Jermod McCoy rotate in at points. Seeing how the young defensive backs stack up against their counterparts will provide an excellent baseline for where the players are at during this stage of their careers.
“Hopefully, they’ve gotten more confidence,” said Raiders special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis, who has worked with some of the rookie defensive backs throughout training camp and practices.
“I think when you come in as a rookie, a lot of times, that’s the biggest thing is ‘do I belong?’ And I think we’ve tried to instill confidence in those guys like showing them film and trying to work them as much as we can and try to get that confidence up going into this first game. We’ve had so many young kids here that have put the time in and now it’s ready to let it rip and see how they do.”