Tag: DJ Glaze

What condition the position is in: Assessing Raiders level of need at offensive tackle

What the Raiders offensive tackle position looks like, who is headed for free agency, and whether an influx is talent is needed.

With free agency a month away, it’s time to check in on the Raiders’ offensive tackle position to give it a condition of either Strong, Stable, Unstable, Serious, or Critical.

Starters: Kolton Miller, DJ Glaze

Backups: Thayer Munford, Dalton Wagner, Gottlieb Ayedze

Free agents: Andrus Peat

Miller had a down season overall. Though there’s plenty to suggest that had a lot to do with the poor coaching and scheme change. Glaze was the team’s third round rookie. He took over for the injured Thayer Munford early in the season and played well enough to keep the job even after Munford was healthy.

Condition: Stable

The team may have a find in Glaze. I would expect they at very least give him the opportunity to prove it. Miller has proven in previous seasons that last year’s performance may be the outlier and figures to bounce back. That isn’t to say they will ignore this position entirely. After all, depth and competition are important. But they don’t have to make it a high priority, especially with several other positions in much more need of attention.

Raiders 2024 season Busters

Rounding up all the performances that most contributed to the Raiders struggles in 2024.

We’ve detailed the Raiders 2024 season Ballers. Now we move on to the second part…

Busters

HC Antonio Pierce, OC Luke Getsy

This team was doomed from the start. The team had little of the mojo it had over the latter half of last season. And having one of the worst offenses in the league was not helping.

Pierce was out of his depth in terms of game management and while he preached not getting too high or low, no one rode the emotional roller coaster more than he did.

Getsy simply walked in a ruined any chance the Oline had of succeeding by changing up their blocking scheme. The result was disastrous.

In the the nine games with Getsy still in place, either he or Pierce (or both) were a Buster six times. And three times a Top Buster.

QB Gardner Minshew

For all the talk about how the Raiders should have gone with Aidan O’Connell from the start, Minshew did actually look better in training camp. Even though it was clearly a lesser of the evils situation. Then Minshew went out and looked downright terrible. He had one good game — that miracle win in Baltimore. Outside of that, he was a Buster six times, and twice a Top Buster.

CB DeCamerion Richardson

He was thrust into a starting role when he was not ready for it. Jakorian Bennett was lost for the season and the rookie Richardson was the Raiders best option. He routinely got torched by opposing receivers and was named a Buster four times over the final eight games, including twice a Top Buster.

S Isaiah Pola-Mao

Pola-Mao also stepped in as an injury replacement. And overall, he showed enough that he could get a shot. That game he had with two forced fumbles spoke well of him. But he has some work still to do, including his penchant for not keeping his head up when he tackles. He was a Top Buster three times down the stretch.

LT Kolton Miller, RT DJ Glaze

This was tough. Because the blocking scheme put Miller in a tough spot early in the season and Glaze is a rookie. The result was Miller giving up seven sacks along with seven penalties, while Glaze gave up three sacks with eight penalties.

The two of them could be the Raiders starting tackles for years to come, so it’s important not to take this as a judgment of their talents. Glaze showed a lot of signs he will be a talented tackle in this league and Miller just had a down year, from which I expect he will bounce back.

RB Zamir White

White came on strong late last season when he had a fresh body and the rest of the NFL did not. I was still skeptical he could sustain it because I hadn’t seen anything special about his running abilities. And this year he was an utter liability. He was a Buster three times in eight games and every other back the Raiders played looked like an upgrade.

See the Ballers

One Raiders rookie Antonio Pierce thinks is not getting enough mention

The Raiders have found their new right tackle in rookie third round pick DJ Glaze. Antonio Pierce thinks that hasn’t gotten enough notice.

The Raiders have a bonafide Rookie of the Year candidate on their team. Brock Bowers has claimed the spotlight as not only the best rookie on the Raiders, but arguably the top rookie in the league.

After Bowers, it’s second round pick Jackson Powers-Johnson who gets some discussion as he was pegged to be a starter at the beginning of the season and has performed well at both guard and center.

But it’s another offensive lineman with whom Antonio Pierce has been consistently impressed. And in his final press conference of the regular season, he was sure to call attention to him.

“DJ Glaze,” Pierce called out by name. “I’m going to keep talking about him. Just consistent, going back to training camp. It’s just impressive. Blocking Malcolm [Koonce], blocking Maxx Crosby and then going out throughout the season and just be consistent.”

Glaze was the team’s pick in the third round out of Maryland. he was behind Thayer Munford at right tackle throughout the offseason and going into training camp. But when Munford got banged up in camp, Glaze got some reps with the first team and held his own, even against the likes of Crosby.

So, when Munford got injured in week three of the season, the team put in Glaze and never looked back.

Even when Munford recovered and was healthy enough to return to the field, they stayed with Glaze at right tackle.

And in the 13 starts since, Glaze has given up just three sacks. That is impressive for any rookie, let alone a third round pick.

He’s showed he may just be their answer at right tackle moving forward.

Raiders PFF grades: 5 highest rated Week 16 vs. Jaguars

The Raiders finally won a game after 10 straight defeats. Which players looked best on film according to Pro Football Focus?

Winning football games is fun, but the cherry on top is watching the tape and reliving your team’s best moments on the way to victory.

After 10 straight weeks of reviewing a loss, the Raiders can enjoy a winning effort after defeating the Jaguars on Sunday. Their top performer according to Pro Football Focus was tight end Brock Bowers. He earned a solid 81.5 score as he amassed 11 receptions and 99 receiving yards; Bowers surpassed 100 receptions and 1,000 receiving yards on the season.

Two other members of the Raiders offense join Bowers on PFF’s grading list. Offensive tackles Kolton Miller and DJ Glaze each made the cut. Miller is a veteran in his prime and Glaze is a rookie, and that’s a great sign for general manager Tom Telesco. The Raiders roster has issues, but at least his offensive tackle situation seems handled. Not every team can say as much.

The Raider’s starting linebackers continue to shine, as Robert Spillane and Divine Deablo also graded highly. Telesco will have to decide whether to sign these players to long-term contracts this offseason. They’ve provided solid defense in the middle of the field, which has long been an area of concern for the Raiders.

But those are decisions for another day. For now, these players can finally enjoy a winning effort after months of reliving one agonizing defeat after another as they study the tape.

Busters for Raiders week 15 loss to Falcons

Where things went wrong for the Raiders in their loss to the Falcons.

The Ballers were made up mostly of defensive players. It was the offense and special teams that doomed the Raiders in this one. So, the makeup the Busters may not surprise you.

Busters

QB Desmond Ridder

This offense was severely hampered by the limitations of Ridder. He had several opportunities in this game, provided by the Raiders defense, on which he couldn’t capitalize.

Only once in the first three quarters did the Raiders get past the 50-yard-line. And even the one that did move into Atlanta territory ended with two bad throws by Ridder. Both were for Brock Bowers, the first was too low and the other was an overthrow and the Raiders settled for a long field goal.

Just before the half, he finally connected for a decent gain to Bowers. Then followed it up with another bad overthrow to Bowers and then took a sack to send the two teams to the locker room with a 9-3 Falcons lead.

The third quarter saw the Raiders offense convert one first down. One. The first possession, Ridder was sacked twice, neither were the fault of his Oline. Then after the only first down — on an Alexander Mattison run — he overthrew Tre Tucker, nearly threw an interception, and rolled out right and threw the ball away. He had one more three-and-out in the quarter.

To lead out the fourth quarter, the Raiders possession ended with two incompletions — one on an overthrown screen pass — and Ridder getting sacked. Again, it was not the fault of his Oline. Next series lasted two plays with Ridder throwing an interception, giving the Falcons the ball already in scoring range. It was just luck that they missed the field goal.

Most of Ridder’s completed passes came on the final two drives. But being flagged for a delay of game on fourth and three certainly didn’t help matters. It meant it would take an amazing play by Ameer Abdullah to keep hope alive.

STC Tom McMahon, S Chris Smith II

When’s the last time you saw three blocked kicks by one team in one game? I can’t recall ever seeing it before. But that’s what happened in this game.

Two of the blocked were on punts. Chris Smith was the personal protector and was blocking no one while a free runner got to AJ Cole. One of the blocks was a deflection that caused a punt to travel just 30 yards. The other was a full on block. Both gave the Falcons great field position.

The other block was on the extra point after the late touchdown. In this case, Michael Mayer was left to try and block two players on his own and that didn’t work out well.

Smith also missed the tackle on a 38-yard return to the 45-yard-line.

OC Scott Turner

Four times the Raiders offense started a drive inside their own ten-yard-line. And despite being backed up against their own end zone, Ridder lined up in the shotgun each time, often times handing the ball off. That’s a dangerous play as it mean the runner basically has three yards they have to run with the ball before they even reach the line of scrimmage.

The first time they did this was on a drive that started at their own three-yard-line. It led to consecutive tackles for loss and a safety to give the Falcons a 9-3 lead.

They did it again from their own three in the third quarter. Similar result. This time it was a run for no gain to start things off followed by two short catches and a punt.

The final time, they led out with another run for a loss. And the next play Ridder threw an interception to give the Falcons the ball in scoring range.

CB Jack Jones

The Falcons’ only touchdown was from some easy film study. Last week Jones bit on a sluggo off a pump fake for a long completion. So, with the Falcons at the Vegas 30-yard-line, they said ‘hey, let’s do that too’. And, so they did. And Jones bit, leaving Drake London wide open for the long touchdown.

On their second scoring drive, he gave up an eight-yard first down run and on their third scoring drive, he gave up a five-yard catch on third-and-four that put them in field goal range.

WR Jakobi Meyers

The first drive of the game, Meyers was given the ball on an end around and set up to pass the ball. But his target was double covered, so he instead took the sack for a ten-yard loss.

The next time they looked to Meyer, was to lead out the third quarter. He made the catch but pushed off and was called for offensive pass interference.

Next pass for him, he couldn’t get to it and it was knocked away. His first catch didn’t come until there was just over five minutes left in the game. To his credit, he had three catches on the drive for 26 yards and the Raiders would score the TD on the drive.

The final drive, he had a couple more catches. But also had one in his hands get knocked out on the way down. And on the hail mary on the final play, he let Jesse Bates high point him to make the interception.

C Jackson Powers-Johnson

JPJ gave up run stuffs for a loss on each of the first two possessions. The second leading to a three-and-out. Even on the field goal drive, he found himself blocking no one while the run was stuffed at the line.

The Raiders running backs averaged 2.17 yards per carry in the game on 17 carries. And while that certainly doesn’t fall on him alone, there weren’t any instances in which he was the key block on a run

T DJ Glaze

Overall, he seemed to have a decent game. But his holding penalty on the final drive was a killer. He was completely beaten on the play and his hold was about as obvious as you’ll see. It would take the Raiders four plays to make up for it, taking 44 vital seconds off the clock. Which ultimately meant the game hinged on Hail Mary passes, which is never a great bet.

See the Ballers

Busters for Raiders Week 13 heartbreaker vs Chiefs

How it started out poorly and then went wrong in the end for the Raiders in their week 13 matchup with the Chiefs.

A valiant effort by the Raiders, but alas they were unable to come away from Arrowhead with a W. This is where I am looking for why that may be.

Busters

S Isaiah Pola-Mao, CB DeCamerion Richardson, CB Jack Jones

Let’s talk about how the Raiders found themselves in a 16-3 hole in the first place.

The second play of the game, Richardson gave up a 14-yard catch. Later Jones was flagged for pass interference to put the Chiefs in field goal range.

The next drive me gave up a catch and missed the tackle for a ten-yard gain. And. few plays later, Pola-Mao gave up the longest catch to that point of 24 yards to put the Chiefs in field goal range.

The first Chiefs’ touchdown, Pola-Mao was out of position to give up a wide open 27-yard catch to the tight end — a new long for the game. That catch put them in scoring range in one play. But it was Jones who would give up the touchdown catch from six yards out.

And on the next drive, Jones it on the double move and Pola-Mao was late getting over to give up *another* 24-yard catch to midfield.

The first drive of the third quarter, Richardson gave up an 11-yard catch to make for an easier field goal to make it a 13-3 Chiefs lead. And then on the next drive, in third and ten, he allowed a 30-yard catch to put them in field goal range again. And there you have that 16-3 lead.

After the Raiders scored two quick touchdowns to take the lead, the Chiefs drove right down to take a back. They did so in part because Jones gave up a a 15-yard catch on second and 20 and on third and five Pola-Mao was late helping again to give up a 19-yard catch to put the Chiefs in first and goal.

LT Kolton Miller, RT DJ Glaze

There were several opportunities for the Raiders to close that 16-3 well before they actually did it. In the second quarter a drive began with a two runs for 28 yards. But it ended three plays later with Glaze giving up a sack.

The first drive of the third quarter began with a 12-yard run and a 25-yard catch and run to put the Raiders in field goal range. But when they went for it on 4th and one, Miller gave up the run stuff for no gain for the turnover on downs.

The next drive, the Raiders got as far as the KC 22-yard line off a crazy Brock Bowers one-handed grab. Then Miller gave up the sack for a 15-yard loss and Daniel Carlson missed the 55-yard field goal attempt wide left.

Miller was called for holding on the next Raiders drive which threatened to spoil a 69-yard return. But this time a long TD pass from O’Connell to Bowers dug them out of it.

After the Chiefs re-took the lead in the fourth quarter, the Raiders picked up a first down, but got no further when Glaze gave up pressure on third and nine, leading to an incompletion and a punt.

HC Antonio Pierce

Aidan O’Connell took the blame for the errant snap on the final play. And, yeah, it was his fault. He was clapping to hurry things up and right guard Dylan Parham took that to mean he wanted the ball snapped, so he tapped Jackson Powers-Johnson’s leg to get him to snap it. But here’s my bigger issue — they never should’ve been in that situation in the first place.

There was too much to lose and not enough to gain from calling that play. He shouldn’t have been in shotgun. He probably shouldn’t have been running a play at all. They were in field goal range with 11 seconds left. That should be the game winner. And instead the team was a panicky, discombobulated mess.

Even if there hadn’t been a botched snap, there would’ve been an illegal shift penalty that wiped out whatever they did and backed them up because they weren’t set when the ball was snapped. They simply have to be more poised in crucial moments like that. Or they shouldn’t be put in that position in a hostile environment like that.

We should be talking about *another* huge come-from-behind, improbable victory in KC. But instead we’re talking about a massive missed opportunity.

See the Ballers.

Busters for Raiders Week 12 loss to Broncos

Those whose performances were most responsible for the Raiders failing to pull out the win over the Broncos.

We move on to the performances that most led to the Raiders losing to the Broncos on Sunday.

Busters

CB DeCamerion Richardson

It seemed whenever the Broncos needed a big play, they looked to whoever Richardson was guarding. Their second score of the game was set up when Richardson gave up a 24-yard catch. Their third score was thanks for Richardson not playing the ball and being called for a pass interference.

The fourth quarter was led out by another Broncos field goal that was made possible when Richardson gave up an 18-yard catch on third and ten. The next drive, Richardson gave up the touchdown catch to make it a 26-16 game. The Raiders couldn’t catch up after that.

QB Gardner Minshew

Minshew had some nice throws in this game. But in the end, the bad plays far outweighed the good.

He fumbled the first snap of the game, with was not a good sign. That first drive would end with him throwing off target for Brock Bowers on third and three. That was followed by a three-and-out on their second possession.

Three straight scoring drives in the second quarter made things very interesting. And had it continued, Minshew would surely have been a Baller for this one. But as often happens, come the third, the good feeling disipated.

Four possessions in the third for the Raiders went like this — three-and-out with a batted pass at the line on third down, Minshew running into a sack and then getting picked off leading to a Broncos TD, a five-play possession ending with Minshew throwing incomplete for a well covered Brock Bowers, and a three-and-out ending on a low pass into the turf.

It was a six-point Bronocs lead by the time the Raiders got the ball in the fourth quarter. They would score two more times, but couldn’t get more than a field goal, which wasn’t enough. Then Minshew was tackled on a roll out, breaking his collarbone and was lost for the season. Just to be clear, I am not blaming him for breaking his collarbone. Just detailing that it happened.

LT Kolton Miller, RT DJ Glaze

A holding penalty on Glaze stalled the Raiders second scoring drive after driving to the 11-yard line.

The Raiders still carried a 13-9 lead into the third quarter. But on their second possession, both Miller and Glaze gave up pressure from each side that caused Minshew’s pass to sail and get intercepted. The Broncos got the ball at the Vegas 18-yard line and scored the TD two plays later to take a 16-13 lead.

Late in the game, with it still a one-score game at 26-19, the Raiders got the ball. Minshew was knocked out of the game and two plays after Desmond Ridder came in, Miller gave up a strip sack, the Broncos recovered, and added a field goal to put the game away.

See the Ballers

Busters for Raiders Week 11 loss to Dolphins

Those Raiders who had the worst day against the Dolphins in week 11.

Enough with the little positives. Let’s look at the glaring negatives. And when you fail to stop a team to force a single punt or turnover, naturally there are going to be plenty of those.

Busters

LB Divine Deablo

The first play of the game, he was in the wrong gap to give up a five-yard run. Two plays later, on the first third down play of the game, Deablo ran into a receiver to give up a 17-yard catch then gave up a seven-yard catch on the next play to put the Dolphins in scoring range. they would go on to score an opening drive touchdown.

He was blocked on a ten-yard run to lead off the Dolphins second scoring drive.

In the third quarter, the Dolphins could go on another touchdown drive. Along with way, Deablo had missed tackles on consecutive plays. Then on first and goal from the four-yard-line, he was called for a facemask that offset a holding penalty on the Dolphins so they just replayed the down.

And finally, the game clinching touchdown, Deablo was supposed to be covering Jonnu Smith, but instead just let him go by him, where he was completely wide open for a 57-yard touchdown.

S Isaiah Pola-Mao

Pola-Mao gave up the first touchdown of the game when he was late getting over in coverage on fourth and goal from the two.

Their second touchdown was set up by a 30-yard run on which Pola-Mao missed the tackle to put them in first and goal at the four.

And on the final TD, Pola-Mao committed to the right side of the field and ended up covering no one while leaving the entire middle of the field complete wide open for Jonnu Smith all alone to go 57 yards for the score.

CB DeCamerion Richardson

With Jakorian Bennett lost on the second play of the game, the rookie was pressed into service. And he didn’t fair well to say the least.

Richardson gave up a 16-yard catch on the first drive that set the Dolphins up at the Vegas 12-yard line. Then on the next drive, he gave up a 24-yard catch that set them up at the 16-yard line.

The second touchdown of the game for the Dolphins was given up by Richardson from nine yards out.

The next drive, he gave up a 14-yard catch on third and four, and finally failed to keep containment on the edge to allow for an easy run around the left side for the touchdown.

RT DJ Glaze, RG Dylan Parham

The Raiders got a reprieve on their first drive of the game when Calais Campbell was flagged for roughing the kicker on their punt attempt. They too advantage and moved into goal to go at the ten. Then on second and goal, Parham gave up the sack to back them up to the 18. They gave up on scoring the TD after that and kicked the field goal.

The next drive, they again drove into goal to go. And again, it was pressure that killed their shot. This time it was Glaze giving up pressure that forced a throw short of the first down and they again settled for three instead of six.

The Raiders got the ball to start the second half, and promptly went three-and-out. Because Glaze gave up pressure on third down again, leading to a bad pass that fell incomplete.

They would finally punch it in in the third quarter, but when they went for two to try and make it a three-point game, Parham got shucked to give up a run stuff for a loss.

See the Ballers

Raiders to field 6th different starting OL of the season Week 11 vs Dolphins

When the Raiders take the field against the Dolphins week 11, they will have their sixth different starting offensive line combination.

Sunday when the Raiders take the field on offense against the Dolphins in Miami, the offensive line will be almost completely unrecognizable from the one that took the field at the start of the season. Heck, it won’t even resemble the one that took the field for their last game.

Injuries along with poor play from the initial starters has completely transformed the Raiders offensive line. This week they will field their whopping sixth different starting offensive line combination this season.

From left to right, the starting five will be LT Kolton Miller, LG Dylan Parham, C Jackson Powers-Johnson, RG Jordan Meredith, and RT DJ Glaze.

The only position on the line with the same starter from the season opener is left tackle Kolton Miller.

Cody Whitehair started the season at left guard — he’s OUT for this game. Andre James started the season at center — he’s OUT for this game.
Dylan Parham started the season at right guard — he got injured and then supplanted as the starter by Jordan Meredith.
Thayer Munford started the season at right tackle — he got injured and then supplanted as the starter by rookie DJ Glaze.

Here is what the starting lineup has looked like for each game this season:

Week LT LG C RG RT
1 Miller Whitehair James Parham Munford
2 Miller Peat James Parham Munford
3 Miller Whitehair James Parham Munford
4 Miller P-Johnson James Parham Glaze
5 Miller P-Johnson James Parham Glaze
6 Miller P-Johnson James Parham Glaze
7 Miller P-Johnson James Meredith Glaze
8 Miller P-Johnson James Meredith Glaze
9 Miller Whitehair P-Johnson Meredith Glaze
11 Miller Parham P-Johnson Meredith Glaze

“At the end of the day, it’s kind of been like our whole season. Next man up, right? Next man up,” head coach Antonio Pierce said of the shuffling line.

“You just hate that we keep changing all these pieces along the offensive line, because at some point, you’d like just to have five guys there, continuity, chemistry. That’s really the glue to our team, when you can have that. So something we’re working on consistently.”

On one hand, it’s hard to gain any consistency of play without continuity. On the other hand, finding the best five is important and at least two of these guys was replaced by someone who outplayed them.

It’s very possible this lineup is the best five the Raiders have. Parham moves back to left guard where he had played the past two seasons and Andre James didn’t do much to keep Rimington Award Winner Powers-Johnson from getting his shot to take the job. And thus far, JPJ has looked the part.

As for depth, the Raiders may need to dig into their practice squad for that.

Raiders trio recognized by The Athletic’s NFL midseason All-Rookie team

A trio of Raiders were recognized by The Athletic in their NFL midseason All-Rookie team.

With the NFL season having passed its midway point, a number of outlets are putting together their list of midseason awards.

The Athletic’s Dane Brugler put together his NFL midseason All-Rookie team.

It won’t surprise Las Vegas Raiders fans to see rookie sensation Brock Bowers on Brugler’s midseason All-Rookie team. Among tight ends, the 6-foot-4, 230 pound rookie from Georgia has racked up a league-leading 580 receiving yards.

Bowers is currently second among all NFL players in receptions with 57 grabs. The Raiders rookie has a pair of touchdown receptions as well. Bowers hauled in a 57-yard touchdown against Denver in Week 5 and a 22-yard touchdown grab last week against the Bengals.

After averaging eight catches per game in October, Bowers now leads all rookies with 57 receptions, second most in the NFL across all players, behind only Wilson (60). Bowers’ run blocking has been a roller coaster, but when targeted, good things have happened (81.4 percent reception rate).

Bowers also has been a weapon with the ball in his hands. Just five receivers and tight ends in the NFL have eclipsed 300 yards after the catch this season: Ja’Marr Chase, Khalil Shakir, Chris Godwin, Zay Flowers and … Bowers. Regardless of who is under center for the Raiders, they need to continue targeting No. 89. – Brugler, The Athletic.

Selected by the Raiders with the No. 13 overall selection in the 2024 NFL draft, it’s clear that Las Vegas has its next great offensive star in Bowers.

In a season where things very well could continue to shift sideways, Bowers figures to remain a bright spot throughout. The first-rounder has done nothing but exceed expectations.

Bowers joins an offensive All-Rookie team from Brugler that also features Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels, New York Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr., Los Angeles Chargers offensive tackle Joe Alt and Pittsburgh Steelers interior offensive lineman Zach Frazier.

Two other Raiders were honored as honorable mention midseason All-Rookie team members.

Interior offensive lineman Jackson Powers-Johnson and offensive tackle DJ Glaze were both chosen as honorable mention selections. Powers-Johnson was a second-round draft pick out of Oregon, while Glaze was a third-round selection of the Raiders via Maryland.