Rob Leonard’s first night as the Raiders’ defensive play-caller gave fans plenty to squint at, but not nearly enough to panic over.
Las Vegas looked rough in Thursday’s preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals. The defense was out of sync, the Cardinals moved the ball with ease, and the first- and second-team units found little resistance.
That’s the kind of performance that naturally sparks concern. Still, this was Leonard’s first game calling the shots, and he’s working with a very young defense that’s still sorting out a lot of new faces.
The biggest issue was the way Las Vegas handled coverage. The Raiders leaned heavily on man looks, and the young defensive backs had a hard time staying attached.
Jermod McCoy got beaten at the top of routes and surrendered two touchdown fades, while Darien Porter gave up another score. Zeke Masses and Eric Stokes also lost their matchups on slants and out routes.
The secondary was part of a defense that finished without a takeaway, and the group was credited with seven of the team’s 11 missed tackles.
That kind of breakdown raises an obvious question about the scheme itself. It’s still not clear whether the Raiders plan to live in man coverage once the games count, and it’s just as unclear whether the current personnel can support that approach. But based on what Thursday showed, that was the look Las Vegas put on the field.
There were a few brighter spots. The linebacker group held up better, with Quay Walker and Cody Lindenberg both showing well against the run. They also weren’t really exposed in coverage, since Arizona head coach Mike LaFleur spent most of his time attacking the corners.
Up front, though, the defense didn’t bring nearly enough. The Raiders were gashed for 156 rushing yards, and the pass rush only produced six pressures on 32 Arizona dropbacks.
Safety Jeremy Chinn added one pressure as well, but the front still finished with just four players posting a pass-rush win rate above 10.0%. For a defense led by a former defensive line coach, that’s a problem.
The first half was especially ugly. Arizona didn’t have an incomplete pass, scored touchdowns on all three of its drives and never faced a third-down stop. Those are the kinds of numbers that jump off the page for all the wrong reasons.
Even so, Thursday wasn’t the time to hand Leonard a final grade. Maxx Crosby wasn’t in the lineup, which obviously changes everything.
The Raiders also had a lot of young players making their NFL debuts, along with others playing their first game in silver and black, so some growing pains were expected. And this was Leonard’s first time as a play-caller, a major responsibility even if he’d spent plenty of time preparing for it.
There’s also the possibility that Leonard was keeping the real defense under wraps. The calls looked pretty basic, and that makes sense for a preseason game - especially one against a Week 17 opponent. Coming from the Mike Macdonald and Brian Flores trees, the expectation is that Leonard has more pressure packages and wrinkles tucked away for later.
So for now, the smart move is patience. If the same issues show up again in joint practices against the Houston Texans and carry into the next two preseason games, then the criticism will get louder in a hurry. But one preseason game is not enough to decide Leonard’s future one way or the other.
This is still a rebuild, and rebuilds don’t snap into place overnight. The Raiders have time to figure out whether Leonard is the right fit. Thursday just wasn’t enough to settle the argument.
In Other News...
Raiders Turned A Preseason Game Into A Family Moment Fans Loved
A preseason game usually gives teams a chance to sort out roster battles and timing, but the Raiders found a sweeter subplot against the Arizona Cardinals. Fernando Mendozas younger brother, Max, got a spot in the broadcast booth during the game, showing up in Fernandos No. 15 jersey and joining veteran broadcasters for a moment that felt bigger than the scoreboard.
For Max, it was a chance to live out a dream of experiencing sports broadcasting, and the organization helped make it happen. The scene quickly resonated with fans, who shared and embraced the moment as one of those rare sports stories that feels personal, playful and very much in the spirit of the Raiders family. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Broadcast Moment Says Everything About Aidan OConnell Right Now
In the middle of a preseason broadcast, Raiders analyst Kirk Morrison had one of those on-air moments that instantly felt bigger than the game itself. Seeing AOC trending on social media, Morrison briefly assumed the chatter was about quarterback Aidan OConnell, a reminder of just how much the young passer is starting to occupy the Raiders conversation even before the real stakes of the season arrive.
The mix-up quickly turned into a shared social media punchline once Morrison realized the trend was actually about Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Still, the reaction said plenty about where OConnell sits right now in Las Vegas: not a forgotten backup, but a player whose initials are prominent enough to trigger a football-first instinct from a broadcast booth. [Read more 🡒]
Raiders Tackle Battle Just Took A Big Turn Under Klint Kubiak
The Raiders offensive line got a clearer look under new coach Klint Kubiak, and the early signs were encouraging. In a recent game, the group showed a level of improvement that stood out after a summer of sorting through options, with young tackles D.J. Glaze and Charles Grant both earning strong grades from Pro Football Focus for their work.
That matters because Las Vegas is still trying to settle the picture up front, where several linemen are being evaluated for starting jobs. Kolton Miller remains a key part of the equation despite some durability concerns, but the bigger question is how the Raiders map out the rest of the tackle spot as Kubiaks system takes hold and the competition starts to sharpen. [Read more 🡒]