Two months ago, Jackson Powers-Johnson’s path with the Raiders looked shaky. By Sunday, it looked a lot cleaner.
What changed starts with the work that happened behind the scenes. Raiders offensive line coach and run game coordinator Rick Dennison made one offseason request of Powers-Johnson right away: trim down without losing the power that made him such an intriguing pick in the first place.
Mark Schlereth, who was on the FOX broadcast team for the Raiders’ 27-13 win on Sunday, said Dennison told him exactly how that conversation went on the Stinkin’ Truth Podcast.
“I sat before the game, and I talked to offensive line coach, run game coordinator, Rick Dennison, and I said, ‘Hey, Rico, man, tell me about these guys,’ and he was talking about a couple of guys on the right side,” Schlereth said on the Stinkin’ Truth Podcast.
“[Dennison] said Jackson Powers-Johnson… the first thing we worked on this off season was losing weight. He goes, ‘I want you to be quick.
I want you to maintain your power, but you’ve got to lose weight.’ Even coming into camp, dropping the weight so he wasn’t so big.
He is a different player, on tape, aggressive, getting after guys. He looks like the guy they drafted to be a long-term answer.
I thought he was great.”
That progress mattered because Powers-Johnson had spent part of the summer looking like a player in danger of sliding. In July, reports suggested he was losing ground with the new coaching staff, much the way he had under Pete Carroll’s staff a year earlier. Then he missed the August 20 preseason game in Houston, which sparked more chatter that Caleb Rogers could jump him on the depth chart.
Instead, Powers-Johnson kept his starting role and, in the regular season opener, played like the player the Raiders believed they were getting.
That view lines up with what others around the team were seeing in camp. Raider Nation Radio host Q Myers said Powers-Johnson stood out from the start of OTAs and seemed to lock down the job early.
“I think he earned it. I really do, and I’m excited about that,” Myers said on the Locked on Raiders Squad Show two weeks ago.
“I don’t know if you’ve seen a lot of his, you know, media moments or post-game locker room sound. He’s been very serious… kind of on point where he understands, ‘Alright, this is who I am, this is who I need to be, and this is what this organization, coaching staff expects from me.’”
“I think that he’s come in with a really good mindset… what I’ve seen from him at camp, I think he’s earned that job. I think Caleb Rogers has done a really good job as well, but JPJ could be that guy that Lincoln mentions all the time, that MIM, that mauler in the middle.
He’s the guy that has the nasty. He brings that nasty, and I really feel like that that can help establish the identity of this Raiders offense, a line that they desperately need.”
In Other News...
Chargers Suddenly Bring A Big Week 2 Concern Into Raiders Game
The Chargers are already dealing with an injury report that could shape the buildup to their Week 2 meeting with the Raiders, and it starts with rookie receiver Ladd McConkey. McConkey is managing a rib injury and sat out Wednesdays practice, while Los Angeles also had Teair Tart, Elijah Molden and Trey Pipkins III either missing work or operating on a limited basis as the week opened.
Jim Harbaugh left McConkeys status murky, which matters for a Raiders defense that will be watching the Chargers passing game closely no matter who is available. Early-week injury reports do not always settle the picture, but this one gives Las Vegas a little more to monitor as the matchup approaches, especially if Los Angeles has to adjust its offensive plan around a receiver it was counting on. [Read more 🡒]
Kirk Cousins Admits One New Vegas Habit Could Be Trouble
Kirk Cousins wasted little time settling into his new routine after signing a fully guaranteed deal with the Raiders in the 2026 offseason and winning the starting quarterback job. He opened the season with a victory and three touchdown passes, then added another milestone by joining the NFLs 300-touchdown club, giving Las Vegas exactly the kind of immediate return it was hoping for from a veteran quarterback brought in to steady the offense.
The one postgame habit that might need monitoring, though, has nothing to do with coverage shells or pass protection. Cousins said in a press conference that In-N-Out burgers are his preferred meal after games, a West Coast comfort that fits the city but could become a small test of discipline over a long season. For now, it reads like a harmless rookie-style novelty in a new market, but it also hints at how quickly a player can get comfortable once he lands in Las Vegas. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Coaching Search Could Create A New Legal Problem
A Raiders coaching search from a few years back is now part of the broader Brian Flores litigation, with a subpoenaed Korn Ferry document sitting under a protective order as the search firm tries to keep it sealed. Floress side says the material could matter to claims of discrimination or retaliation, which is why the filing has drawn attention beyond the courtroom and back toward a franchise that has already lived through plenty of turnover on the sideline.
What makes the situation awkward for Las Vegas is that the document is tied to a coaching search that may have taken place after February 1, 2022, and could have implications well beyond that one hiring cycle. If the court decides the record should come out, it could shape how later coaching hires are viewed in 2024, 2025 or 2026, turning a past front-office process into a fresh legal headache for the Raiders. [Read more 🡒]