One of the harder things to do in the NFL is break in with an unconventional route. While we like to talk about how many undrafted free agents play in the league, percentage-wise in terms of how many are signed each year, the number is actually pretty small.
Undrafted free agents have to prove themselves starting at the bottom, beneath drafted players and proven veterans. That’s no small task.
With no offseason, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, that task was already monumentally more difficult than it had been, and that’s saying a lot. Now, that task just got even tougher.
The league is expected not to field a full 90-man roster for training camp this year, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Teams are expected to field 10-15 fewer players this training camp, and it’s most certainly the undrafted rookies who will be the ones hit hardest by this. And they are the ones who need camp the most.
As of now, there are 8 undrafted rookies on the Raiders’ roster. There are also 11 first-year players. That’s 19 players trying to break onto an NFL roster without the benefit of being drafted. The rookies in particular don’t even have the benefit of having a rookie minicamp.
Currently, training camp is scheduled to begin on July 28, though rookies and first-year players will arrive at least a week early. If the league allows teams to wait until after that pre-camp warm-up to trim their rosters, that time could be beneficial to help them decide who gets to stick around on their smaller camp roster.
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