If all things were normal right now, the Raiders would be days away from opening the preseason. No players more look forward to those moments than the undrafted rookies and young players fighting to break onto the roster. But things are not normal right now. Far from it. The COVID-19 pandemic ruined any chance of normalcy.
Instead of prepping for their first game action, the Raiders are prepping for their first practices that even resemble a typical training camp practice. That’s because there has been no offseason practices up to now, so their on-field activities are more akin to what they would have done in OTA’s, which usually take place in May.
We knew back then that this offseason was going to be an incredibly challenging one for anyone not established on an NFL roster. Mike Mayock didn’t even bother with late round draft picks for that reason, making all seven of the team’s selections in the first four rounds.
Following the draft, the Raiders signed eight undrafted free agents.
The first big punch to the gut for those undrafted rookies and any other NFL hopefuls was the lack of a rookie minicamp. That meant the best opportunity for unheralded young players to make a strong initial impression was lost. It also meant no tryout players. A whole crop of potential was completely left out.
Then there was no OTA’s and no mandatory minicamp in June. Then come training camp report day and the NFL forced all teams to trim their rosters from 90 players to 80.
With that reduction, the Raiders cut their undrafted rookie crop nearly in half before any of them ever set foot on the field. Those undrafted rookies who were cut were WR Siaosi Mariner, DB Jordan Brown, K Dominic Eberly, and LS Liam McCullough.
The remaining undrafted rookies currently on the roster are TE Nick Bowers, CB Madre Harper, DT Mike Panasiuk, T Kamaal Seymour, and LB Javin White.
These five won’t get a chance to take what they are showing on the practice field and prove they can replicate it in live game action due to the entire preseason being cancelled. So, even as hard as it has been to reach this point, their road is still an arduous one.
“For the young guys and the undrafted guys, I honestly feel for them,” said second year DE Maxx Crosby. “It sucks because a lot of guys out there are not going to be able to show what they can do and make the team. That’s one thing I definitely feel bad for are those guys who are coming in who are underdogs. You know, the Keisean Nixons and Keelan Dosses. I feel bad for them.”
Keelan Doss and Keisean Nixon are great examples of undrafted guys who made an impression as undrafted rookies and broke onto an NFL roster. But even they were priority undrafted free agents. Jalen Richard was a tryout player back in 2016 and is now heading into his fifth NFL season.
“Think about Jalen Richard,” said Derek Carr. “What if he just came in and we have a stable full of backs like we did that year and it’s like, ‘Oh, well I guess he’s not going to make it.’ It’s really tough to be able to tell.”
It’s somewhat debatable whether training camp or preseason means more to a player’s ability to make the team. My take is it’s camp that means more. But preseason is still important to these players. It’s supposed to be the culmination of all they’ve worked toward to clinch a roster spot. And they don’t have it.
“It’s a lot. The odds are up against them more than anybody else ever,” said Raiders tight end Darren Waller. “I don’t think there’s ever been anything like this ever. People that need a lot of opportunities need game experience, need those reps to show what they can do and show that they deserve to be invested in longer than a couple months. It’s tough.”
Waller was not an undrafted player himself, but he wasn’t far from it. He was a sixth round pick, which is in no way a guarantee a player will earn a spot on the roster. He was well into his first training camp in Baltimore thinking he wasn’t going to make it. It was a scrimmage with the Eagles that he thinks turned things around for him.
“Most of training camp I was thinking that I wasn’t going to make the team, because there were receivers there that were really good,” Waller said of his first NFL offseason in Baltimore. “I just didn’t have a lot of confidence in myself, I didn’t have a lot of drops, it was just like not being mentally all the way there, but we practiced a week in Philly my rookie year for training camp. The joint practice with the Eagles, and the two days of practice with them I had really good days almost like surprised myself how good I was playing in those days and I was getting reps against first team players and making big plays, catching touchdowns, and it really surprised me. But it was those days going against the competition, it reminded me that when it’s time to really go against somebody, I’m a guy that’s going to show up.”
These rookies won’t have their chance at a scrimmage or a game. At least not this year. And teams are averse to risk. They are far more likely to go with the relatively known commodity. Whether that’s a returning player or a veteran.