Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
5 positions for Raiders that will have new starters in 2024
Every new season brings change. Some change is not yet known. While some we know already. For instance, there will be new starters at several positions for the Raiders this season. These are the positions we know will change hands.
Raiders sign Round 3 OL DJ Glaze to 4-year rookie contract
As the Raiders rookies took the field for the first day of rookie minicamp, they did so with seven of their eight drafted rookies under contract. Six had signed their deals on Thursday and third round pick DJ Glaze put his name on the dotted line Friday morning.
#Raiders have signed 3rd round pick OT DJ Glaze…leavig only 2nd round pick G Jackson Powers-Johnson as only unsigned member of team's 8-man draft class…for now.
— Paul Gutierrez (@PGutierrezESPN) May 10, 2024
As Gutierrez noted, the only remaining draft pick by the Raiders yet to be officially signed is second round pick (44 overall) Jackson Powers-Johnson.
Glaze signed a four-year deal worth $5.86 million with a cap hit of $1.07 million this season.
“[I can] just focus on football,” Glaze said of signing his deal. “I don’t have to worry about any of that extra stuff. Just get out here and work. Study, learn, just put it all together.”
The former Maryland tackle was selected with the 77th overall pick in April’s draft with GM Tom Telesco stating he will be in the mix for the right tackle job, along with third-year tackle Thayer Munford.
Both Glaze and Munford have some experience on the left side as well, so whoever wins the battle, the other figures to be the team’s swing tackle.
Zamir White gets new number, Raiders rookies get their numbers
The Raiders have assigned numbers to their rookie class. Here they are:
Draft class:
TE Brock Bowers – 89
G Jackson Powers-Johnson – 70
T DJ Glaze – 71
CB Decamerion Richardson – 21
LB Tommy Eichenberg – 45
RB Dylan Laube – 23
S Trey Taylor – 37
CB MJ Devonshire – 26
Undrafted:
G Clark Barrington – 64
QB Carter Bradley – 14
T Andrew Coker – 73
WR Jeff Foreman – 80
DT Tomari Fox – 60
DE TJ Franklin – 57
LB Amari Gainer – 53
CB Demarcus Governor – 44
WR Lideatrick Griffin – 81
G Jake Johanning – 63
WR Ramel Keyton – 82
C Will Putnam – 67
S Phalen Sanford – 42
DT Noah Shannon – 62
CB Ja’Quan Sheppard – 46
DE Ron Stone Jr – 76
CB Rayshad Williams – 36
Number change:
RB Zamir White – 3 (was 35)
New addition:
WR Michael Gallup – 10
White got his Georgia number after two years wearing 35 for the Raiders.
Many of these numbers will change by the time the season starts. Obviously not everyone will make the team and many of the numbers given out aren’t ideal for their position, but the number they wanted wasn’t currently available.
But these are the number the rookies will wear when they report to rookie minicamp and OTA’s.
Introducing Raiders 2024 Draft class
The draft has come to a close and there are eight new Raiders in the house. This is the Raiders Draft class of 2024.
1. (13) Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia
2. (44) Jackson Powers-Johnson, G/C, Oregon
3. (77) DJ Glaze, T, Maryland
4. (112) Decamerion Richardson, CB, Mississippi St
5. (148) Tommy Eichenberg, LB, Ohio St
6. (208) Dylan Laube, RB, New Hampshire
7a. (223) Trey Taylor, S, Air Force
7b. (229) MJ Devonshire, CB, Pittsburgh
The Raiders made no trades up or down, preferring to stick at their original draft spots for their eight selections.
While they went all offense on days one and two, they went almost all defense on Day three. According to Tom Telesco, that wasn’t intentional, but just how the day played out.
What was intentional was getting guys who could play on special teams because that will be many of the late round guys’ ticket to making the team.
The one glaring need position they did not address was quarterback. Telesco said they were thinking about adding a QB on day one, but after the top six guys went before they picked at 13, they didn’t consider taking one the rest of the draft.
Draft Day 2 for the Raiders was all about completing the re-built of the offensive line.
Build from the trenches out. That’s a philosophy you hear a lot in today’s NFL. That means you focus on the offensive and defensive lines and go from there.
This process started in free agency. They re-signed center Andre James to make sure that wasn’t yet another position they needed to address this offseason. Then they turned to the other side of the ball, making DT Christian Wilkins their big free agent signing and bringing back John Jenkins and Adam Butler. Last month they brought in guard Cody Whitehair, who worked in Luke Getsy’s system in Chicago to help the line transition to a new offense.
Those moves were a great start, but still left the Raiders with two glaring needs — right guard and right tackle. And after taking tight end Brock Bowers at 13, they still had those holes to fill heading into day two.
Following Day two, GM Tom Telesco made it clear that was his intention coming into the day.
They went about filling those holes with both of their picks, grabbing Oregon’s Jackson-Powers Johnson in second round (44 overall) and Maryland’s DJ Glazer in the third (77 overall).
“We felt that as we build this team, it has to come from both sides of the ball, offensive and defensive line,” said Telesco. “That was my project when I originally arrived here. [Antonio Pierce] had the same job, which was perfect that we had the same vision. We’ve got some work to do, we know that. It’s not a total rebuild, but it really has to start on the offensive line and defensive line.”
Both Powers-Johnson and Glaze played multiple positions over their college careers. And neither will be playing the position where they most recently lined up.
Jackson was the best center in the country while Glaze made third team All Big Ten at left tackle. But before that JPJ lined up at right guard while Glaze played at right tackle. Those positions respectively are where each will call home for now.
“He’ll play guard for us,” Telesco said of Powers-Johnson. Another young kid, 21 years old, still a lot of growth in his game. But he’s big, he’s tough, plays a Raiders style of football.”
Jackson says the transition from center back to right guard will be “seamless.”
And while Telesco values Glaze’s versatility, the Raiders will need him to compete on the right side of the line right away.
“We see him more as a right tackle,” Telesco said of Glaze. “Big frame, long arms, really productive college player. He blocked the guy in front of him really consistently.”
Both players put good work on tape from their college days. But it was the Senior Bowl that was the clincher for Telesco that each could be the answer for the right side of the Raiders offensive line.
“It was nice that they put him at guard a little bit at the Senior Bowl even though he played it some at Oregon,” Telesco said of Powers-Johnson.
As for Glaze, it was more about seeing him face pro prospects to see how he held up. Something he called a “confirmation” of what the Raiders saw on tape from him.
While Powers-Johnson was the consensus big board top prospect at any position, he also happened to come at a position of need. Glaze, on the other hand, was positioned in the rankings as a fourth round pick, but Glaze said over conference call that he was told he very well could have a team take him in round three. That team was the Raiders. And he became the final piece to the puzzle the Raiders were putting together in the trenches.
