The Las Vegas Raiders are about to hit a key checkpoint in camp, with their first padded practice set for August 3. That makes now the right moment to sort through the roster fights that still have real juice, and to project which players are most likely to come out on top.
A few of these battles look straightforward. Others are going to hinge on health, familiarity, and whether a young player can hold up once the pads come on. Here’s how the biggest open spots are shaping up.
At free safety, the Raiders appear to have a clear path toward Treydan Stukes. Jeremy Chinn is expected to handle most of the snaps at strong safety in the box, but the defense still needs someone who can patrol deep. Isaiah Pola-Mao is the incumbent, and the team also added rookies Treydan Stukes and Dalton Johnson, with John Spytek taking Stukes in the second round and Johnson in the fifth.
Stukes may have played fewer snaps at free safety than Johnson did at Arizona, but being the earlier pick should buy him more chances to carve out a role. He also got work in the spring at his natural slot spot while Taron Johnson was away from the team because of a contract dispute, and those first-team reps should help him move into the center-field job. Pola-Mao, meanwhile, gave up six touchdowns in coverage last season.
The No. 2 cornerback spot looks like a much cleaner fight between Jermod McCoy and Darien Porter. McCoy arrived at camp healthy and ready to challenge for the job opposite Eric Stokes.
Porter had stretches of solid play last season, but his inexperience showed up in coverage, and he allowed a passer rating of 100.9 in 17 games, including 10 starts. He also missed 10.6% of his tackle attempts.
McCoy brings the better college résumé. Between 2023 and 2024 at Oregon State and Tennessee, he posted 75 tackles, one tackle for loss, 16 pass breakups and six interceptions. He tore his ACL in January of 2025 and missed his final collegiate season, but nearly 20 months after the injury, he’s back in the mix and should win the job if he stays healthy through camp.
Winner: Jermod McCoy
Right guard is another spot where the favorite is pretty easy to identify. Jackson Powers-Johnson has picked up where he left off last season, lining up next to three-time Pro Bowler Tyler Linderbaum at center.
Powers-Johnson’s season ended in Week 10 because of injury, but before that he was trending up as a pass-blocker. Pro Football Focus credited him with allowing just two pressures and no sacks over his final two games.
Given his second-round draft status and the way he played while healthy, it would be a surprise if he didn’t hold onto the starting job. If injuries become a problem again, second-year pro Caleb Rogers or rookie third-rounder Trey Zuhn III could step in.
Winner: Jackson Powers-Johnson
Left guard is more open after Dylan Parham left in free agency. Jordan Meredith is a possibility after playing there in 2024, but Klint Kubiak may lean toward someone he already knows well. That points to Spencer Burford, whom Kubiak coached in San Francisco in 2023 when Burford was the 49ers’ right guard.
The Raiders gave Burford a modest $3.25 million deal, and his familiarity with the offense should help him in what figures to be a competitive battle. He’s also 26, two years younger than Meredith, which could matter to Kubiak as he installs his system in Las Vegas.
The kicking job deserves a look too, even if it’s easy to overlook. Matt Gay is in the mix, but his field-goal percentage has been below 84% for three straight seasons. The other contender is undrafted rookie Kansei Matsuzawa, who went 27-for-29 on field goals and 40-for-40 on extra points in his final season at Hawaii.
If Matsuzawa stays sharp in practice and during the preseason, the Raiders could go with the 27-year-old rookie over the 32-year-old veteran.
"The Tokyo Toe" wins this battle.
In Other News...
Raiders Fans Just Got A Telling AFC West Camp Reality Check
Training camp across the AFC West is already offering a reminder that the Raiders are not just building their own roster, they are trying to close the gap on a division that never stands still. Denver has a new training facility, Kansas City is juggling staff and personnel questions, and the Chargers are leaning hard into continuity as they get ready for another run, which means Las Vegas has to track more than its own depth chart this summer.
For the Raiders, the early division picture is useful because it shows where the pressure points may be. The Broncos still have some long-term questions up front, the Chiefs are sorting through uncertainty at several spots on both sides of the ball, and the Chargers are banking on healthy key pieces returning to form. None of that settles the AFC West race, but it does give Las Vegas a clearer sense of where the openings might be if it wants to make a move. [Read more 🡒]
These Raiders UDFAs Have A Real Shot To Survive Camp
Training camp has a way of sorting out the long shots from the real contenders, and the Raiders have a few undrafted free agents who already look like they belong in the conversation. Las Vegas brought in 17 UDFAs this offseason, and the early read is that Kansei Matsuzawa, Roman Hemby and Cian Slone each have a plausible route to sticking around if they keep showing up in camp and preseason action.
Matsuzawa may have the cleanest opening because of what he already brings as a kicker, while Hemby and Slone fit the kind of depth-chasing the Raiders need as the roster takes shape. None of those paths are guaranteed, of course, and that is the point of this part of camp: every rep matters, every preseason snap matters, and for a few undrafted players, the next few weeks could decide whether they are still in the building when the final cuts arrive. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Still Have Two Starting Jobs That Could Change Everything
The Raiders spent most of the offseason settling their depth chart, leaving far fewer questions than they had a few months ago. On offense and defense, the starting picture is largely in place, but the interior of the offensive line is still unsettled enough to matter. Both guard spots remain open heading into training camp, and that makes the next few weeks a real test for a unit that can shape how steady the whole offense looks.
Kevin Kubiak has made it clear the decision will not come down to one flashy practice or a single strong rep. Consistency, versatility, pass protection, run blocking and how well each player fits with the rest of the line all figure into the mix, which is exactly why this battle could linger for a while. The Raiders also have to wait before the physical part of camp really ramps up, so this is the kind of competition that should reveal itself gradually rather than all at once. [Read more 🡒]