Carter Bradley – Syndication Server

Raiders make 5 roster moves including Aidan O’Connell contingency plan

Raiders made several roster moves on Wednesday as they began preparations for Week 15 vs the Falcons. Including adding a quarterback.

Wednesday the Raiders had their first walk-thru as they begin the week of practices for their Monday Night matchup with the Atlanta Falcons in Las Vegas. As they do so, they needed to tidy up the roster in light of some injuries.

Signed QB Carter Bradley off the practice squad.
Placed RB Zamir White on injured reserve
Signed QB Jake Luton to practice squad
Signed DT Tyler Manoa to the practice squad
Released DT Marquan McCall from the practice squad

Bradley spent the offseason with the team and has been on the practice squad all season. He was added to backup Desmond Ridder in case Aidan O’Connell is unable to go.

“Well, I just think dealing with the injuries, might as well have three quarterbacks up the way the season has been going,” said Antonio Pierce. “But Carter [Bradley] has done a really good job, kind of like Sincere [McCormick], giving us this really good look on the practice squad and the look team, being competitive, really getting after us. And I think as the season has grown, again it’s in practice, but you have seen improvement. I think the moxie’s come out of him, he’s kind of got out of his shell. I think it’s a great opportunity, you never know what’s going to happen in the game, and he has to be ready to play because it’s been that kind of season for us.”

Luton was signed to the practice squad to replace Bradley. He was a sixth round pick by the Jaguars in the 2020 draft out of Oregon State. He started three games for the Jaguars his rookie season and hasn’t played a game since, spending time on the practice squads of the Jaguars, Saints, and Panthers.

Raiders add depth at QB, TE with practice squad elevations

Quarterback Carter Bradley could be the primary backup on Sunday for Gardner Minshew while Justin Shorter will add depth at tight end.

Injuries have struck at quarterback and at tight end for the Raiders and to maintain depth on the active roster, they hav called up players at each position from the practice squad.

They elevated QB Carter Bradley from the practice squad due to the injury to Aidan O’Connell. They also signed Desmond Ridder this week off the Cardinals practice squad, but he is unlikely to be ready to step in on such short notice.

Bradley is an undrafted rookie who spent the offseason and training camp with the Raiders. He was among the team’s final roster cuts and re-signed to the practice squad.

Also getting the call up once again is tight end Justin Shorter due to the injury to Harrison Bryant. Shorter will be the third tight end behind Brock Bowers and John Samuel Shenker.

Shorter was a Round five pick by the Bills in the 2023 NFL Draft out of Penn State. He was cut by the Bills in their final roster cuts and signed to the Raiders practice squad.

Raiders plan to enter season with 2 QBs on roster and adding one to practice squad

Tuesday was the cutdown deadline for NFL teams to bring their rosters from 90 players down to 53. On the Raiders roster, they kept just two quarterbacks, while cutting veteran Nathan Peterman and undrafted rookie Carter Bradley.

I asked Raiders GM Tom Telesco what his plan was for the position going into the season.

“Things could always change, but right now we’re looking at probably two on the active roster and one on the practice squad,” said Telesco.

That means, barring any major surprises among the cuts out there, the Raiders will stand pat with Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell as their two active roster quarterbacks.

What they do with the practice squad spot is what we should find out by tomorrow. Obviously, the most likely would be bringing back either Bradley or Peterman, but should there be someone out there who they think could be an upgrade, there could be some consideration there.

The one issue with that would be the better quarterbacks out there are likely to be claimed off waivers, which means they would go on the active roster of whatever team claims them. So, if that’s not the Raiders’ plan, they would need to wait to see who clears waivers before adding them to the practice squad.

Busters for Raiders Preseason Week 2 vs Cowboys

We continue to the Busters for Raiders Preseason Week 2 vs Cowboys

After the Raiders jumped out to a fast start in the preseason opener in Minnesota, that didn’t happen against the Cowboys in Week two. Not much was working on offense and even the Cowboys backups were getting the better of Raiders starters on both sides of the ball.

Busters

QB Gardner Minshew

Antonio Pierce was hoping either Minshew or Aidan O’Connell would step up and claim the starting job. Neither of them did that and from the looks of things, Pierce had to look past his performance in this game in order to name hm the starter.

O’Connell threw a pick six in this game, but Minshew was lucky not to do the same on the first drive of the game. Twice, in fact.

The first drive, he missed an open Tre Tucker, opting to throw into coverage, having the pass broken up and threw a ball too high for Jakobi Meyers to get. Then on fourth and three, the linebacker stepped in front of his pass and would have had a clear path for a touchdown, but he dropped it.

A 48-yard connection with Tucker would get the Raiders in field goal range on their next drive, but another overthrow for Meyers would have them settle for a field goal.

Next drive, he waited too long to throw it and again nearly had it intercepted. It was only Michael Mayer turning defender that that pass was knocked down instead of picked.

Minshew’s final drive ended with him throwing it too high for Harrison Bryant on fourth and six.

G Dylan Parham

Just after the Raiders got to the 12-yard line on the 48-yard completion to Tre Tucker, Parham gave up a run stuff at the line. In the second quarter, he was slow to get into position on a screen, causing the ball to fall incomplete. On the final play of the third quarter, he was flagged for holding. Two plays later, O’Connell threw his pick six.

T Andrus Peat

Two plays following the 48-yard bomb, Peat gave up a pressure resulting in an incompletion. The drive would end on the next play. The next drive Peat would miss his block on a screen and it was blown up for a one yard gain.

T Thayer Munford

Peat was replaced at left tackle in the second quarter with Munford moving from the right to the left side. And on his second play at LT, Munford gave up a pressure, causing Misnhew to have to scramble for yards.

The final drive of the second quarter ended with Munford giving up another pressure, leading to an incompletion. After the Raiders finally got in the end zone in the third quarter, the two-point conversion fail in large part due to Munford giving up pressure on Minshew as he went back to pass.

DT Byron Young

It looked like the Cowboys game plan at one point was just simply to run at Young. He was getting pushed around a lot. On one drive in the second quarter, it seemed like every play. He was driven back on a seven-yard run, then gave up the first down on the next play, gave up a five-yard run two plays later, then later, with the Cowboys in first and goal at the four, he gave up a three-yard run. They scored the go ahead TD on the next play.

QB Carter Bradley

Bradley came in to start the fourth quarter. He was actually allowed to throw the ball this time. And he looked good at first, going six-for-six to start his day. Then the wheels fell off. His next two passes were an overthrown ball and a pass batted at the line. With a delay of game penalty in between.

His second and final drive featured two more batted passes and a ball behind his receiver on third and short.

CB MJ Devonshire

The final long drive for the Cowboys saw Devonshire give up a 17-yard catch, a 30-yard catch, and the third down catch that put the Cowboys in first and goal at the four.

See the Ballers

Biggest snub from the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine at each position

Even though there are more prospects invited to the yearly scouting combine than there are draft slots, there are always players not invited who feel like they should be in Indianapolis. That’s true for the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine, which begins the final week in February.

The league invited 321 prospects to the annual event, the biggest week on the NFL’s offseason calendar. The full list of 321 prospects who were invited to Indianapolis is available via NFL.com.

It’s tough to find some snubs at a few positions without bit nitpicky, but there are some worthy candidates to be drafted in April who won’t be at the combine in Indianapolis. Here’s the biggest snub at each position group.

10 biggest winners from the week of Senior Bowl practices

10 biggest winners from the week of Senior Bowl practices (via Draft Wire):

Another week of Senior Bowl practices ended last week. The three days of work from the American and National rosters helped elevate some players and spotlight who might not be as ready as hoped or hyped for the 2024 NFL draft.

The focus here is on some of the top performers and also a few lesser-known prospects who helped themselves during the sessions in Mobile.

According to our friend Jeff Risdon at Draft Wire, here are 10 biggest winners during the 2024 Senior Bowl:

10 biggest winners from the week of Senior Bowl practices

These 10 players did the most during Senior Bowl practices to help their 2024 NFL draft stock

Another week of Senior Bowl practices ended on Thursday. The three days of work from the American and National rosters helped elevate some players and spotlight who might not be as ready as hoped or hyped for the 2024 NFL draft.

The focus here is on some of the top performers and also a few lesser-knwon prospects who helped themselves during the sessions in Mobile.

10 takeaways from American team Senior Bowl practice day 3

The American team had their final practice from the Reese’s Senior Bowl on Thursday. Tyler Forness gave his 10 takeaways from the afternoon

Day three of the 2024 Reese’s Senior Bowl is here, signifying the final practice before the two teams face off on Saturday.

Senior Bowl week is one of the first premier stops on the road to the NFL draft, and this year’s version has not disappointed. We have seen everything from the usual suspects securing their spots in round one to the virtually unknown prospects becoming household names.

Tyler Forness, Managing Editor for Vikings Wire, has had his finger on the pulse in Mobile from the first snaps of practice. He gives us his ten takeaways from the American team’s final chance to compete before the game and what it could mean for the prospects as their pre-draft process begins.

13 takeaways from American team Senior Bowl practice day 2

From Jamari Thrash to Ladd McConkey, here are 13 takeaways from the second day of practice for the American team at the 2024 Reese’s Senior Bowl

The National team took the spotlight this morning in the second day of Senior Bowl practices, it was the American team’s turn this afternoon. It was another great day of practice for each team, with some heated battles in both the one-on-one sessions and in team practices.

Managing editor Tyler Forness has boots on the ground in Mobile, and is providing us with some valuable insights on more than 100 NFL draft prospects battling to improve their draft stock this week.

Here are 13 takeaways Forness had from the American team’s practice in this afternoon’s Senior Bowl session.

List of quarterbacks at 2024 Senior Bowl

A quick list of the quarterbacks that will be in Mobile for the 2024 Senior Bowl

The vast majority of the football world will soon descend upon Mobile, Alabama for the annual Senior Bowl. Jets fans this year will have some reason to watch as defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich will serve as head coach of the National Team.

To get a start on the week, we’ll compile a simple list of players at each position that will be in Mobile this week. We’ll start with the quarterbacks, and while the Jets may not be grabbing a quarterback early in the draft, it will still be interesting to watch these guys compete in Mobile.

Coaching the quarterbacks will be Bears new quarterbacks coach Kerry Joseph and Cardinals quarterbacks coach Israel Woolfork.