Tag: Jakorian Bennett

Raiders once promising 2024 defense obliterated by injury

There were high hopes for the Raiders defense this season. Then injuries hit and they just got worse and worse.

No defense came out of the 2023 season hotter than the one the Raiders were fielding. Over the stretch run under interim head coach Antonio Pierce, they were the best defense in football.

Then come 2024 it all fell apart.

The issues started before the season began and injuries were part of the problem.

A prominent role in the resurgent defense was Malcolm Koonce who had eight sacks in the final nine games coming off the left edge. And just prior to the start of the season, he suffered a season-ending knee injury that would require surgery.

His spot has been filled by a committee of four different edge rushers this season who have as many sacks combined (eight) in 13 games as Koonce had alone in the previous nine games.

Soon the Raiders would be without both their starting edge rushers. In week a week two win in Baltimore, All Pro Maxx Crosby would suffer a high ankle sprain that hobbled him in an ugly loss to the Panthers and then cost him the first game of his career. He would return the following week, but it was clear he was fighting through the pain each week since then. More on that later.

Another major piece to the Raiders strong defense last season was new safety Marcus Epps. Three games into what was to be a contract year for him in 2024, Epps was lost to an ACL injury. He has been replaced by Isaiah Pola-Mao and there has been a noticeable drop off in safety play as a result.

The biggest splash free agent addition in the NFL was the Raiders landing defensive tackle Christian Wilkins. He was supposed to complete the Raiders defensive line and make a formidable one-two punch with Maxx Crosby. Five games into the season, he went down with a broken foot and was lost for the season.

Adam Butler has done well stepping into a more prominent role, though it’s hard not to imagine how much better the line would be had he been able to team up with Wilkins. In just five games, the Pro Bowler had 11 solo tackles, which is *still* second most on the team among interior defensive linemen despite being without him for two months.

At the same time, starting linebacker Divine Deablo was in the midst of a three-game stint on the inactive list. Then backup Luke Masterson got injured too, leading to the team starting fifth round rookie Tommy Eichenberg.

Midway through the season, the cornerbacks went from healthy to nearly wiped out in an instant. Week nine in Cincinnati, just prior to the bye week, the team simultaneously lost starting cornerbacks Jakorian Bennett and Nate Hobbs.  Bennett is lost for the season with a shoulder injury and Hobbs’s ankle injury has had him out for the equivalent of a trip to injured reserve and is finally set to return this week.

There. was even a couple games there where the Raiders had no starting safeties on the field. Jack Jones got banged up as well and the Raiders had all reserves on the field, with no cornerbacks left on the roster should one of them go down with injury.

Which brings us to the most devastating injury news this team could have — Maxx Crosby is done for the season.

Crosby had done well to put his ankle injury behind him. Then last Sunday in Tampa, he got rolled up on again and re-injured it. This time there was no fighting through it. For the sake of his own long term health — and with the team long since eliminated from playoff contention — he shut it down and opted to have surgery.

That means more than half of the team’s starting defense has either been placed on injured reserve, or — in the case of Hobbs — spent the equivalent of a trip to IR sidelined this season.

Based on the way the Raiders have played overall this season, the defense probably wouldn’t have been able to save them. Particularly with regard to the play at quarterback. But it could offer some hope that should the bulk of those players return next season — presumably with a better QB — this team could bounce back quickly.

Raiders send 2 starters to injured reserve, add 4 to active roster Week 13 vs Chiefs

Raiders made several moves including sending Gardner Minshew and Jakorian Bennett to IR and adding four others to face the Chiefs Week 13.

Early Thanksgiving Day, the Raiders took care of quite a bit of business. First they sent starting quarterback Gardner Minshew along with starting cornerback Jakorian Bennett to injured reserve.

Minshew broke his collarbone late in the team loss to the Denver Broncos last week. His season is done.

Bennett suffered a shoulder injury on the second play of the team’s game in Miami in week 11 and missed the Broncos game last week. He will be out at least the next four weeks which means should he return this season, he would be eligible to play the final two games of the season.

In corresponding moves, the Raiders officially activated QB Aidan O’Connell from injured reserve and signed practice squad WR Terrace Marshall to the active roster.

O’Connell will start vs the Chiefs on Friday, He had been out the past four games with an injured thumb. While Marshall has been on the team’s practice squad since October 22, appearing in one game this season so far.

Additionally, the Raiders elevated CB Kyu Blu Kelly and RB Sincere McCormick from the practice squad. McCormick in particular played well enough last week against the Broncos to earn more snaps this week.

Raiders will be down at least two starting CB Week 12 vs Broncos

Both Jakorian Bennett and Nate Hobbs are OUT Week 12 vs the Broncos.

Another week, another starting cornerback down for the Raiders. They were already without Nate Hobbs last week in Miami and two plays into the game, they lost Jakorian Bennett as well. Now both will be OUT against the Broncos on Sunday according to Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce.

Also lost to injury in that game was Jack Jones, who practiced on Friday, but whose status is Questionable which means he may not play either.

When Jones went out, the Raiders depleted their entire depth chart at cornerback, with the three corners in the game being DeCamerion Richardson, Darnay Holmes, and Sam Webb. And it’s possible they could be looking at that trio to *start* the game. Or at very least Richardson and Holmes.

They will most certainly be elevating one of the cornerbacks on the practice squad to the active roster to fill out the depth chart. Those three are rookie MJ Devonshire along with Kyu Blu Kelly and newly added Keenan Issac.

Raiders Week 11 snap counts vs Dolphins: Cornerback depth stripped down

At one point the Raiders had no starting cornerbacks on the field and no reserves left at the position either.

Coming into Sunday’s game, the Raiders were down one starting cornerback. Nate Hobbs was OUT with an ankle injury. He was replaced by Darnay Holmes at slot corner. But very quickly the situation got far more dire.

On the second snap of the game, Jakorian Bennett was lost to a shoulder injury and didn’t return. He was replaced by DeCamerion Richardson, leaving Jack Jones as the only starter.

Then Jones left the game for a time, ushering in, which brought in Sam Webb, who was the only remaining cornerback on the roster. And for a time, the Raiders were not only fielding three reserve corners, but their ONLY available corners.

Those three reserves were on the field together when the Raiders gave up the wide open 57-yard touchdown catch to Jonnu Smith that clinched the Dolphins win.

If you’re looking for a glimmer of good news, the offensive line stayed healthy.

All season long, the Raiders have had issues with their offensive line staying healthy. It’s for that reason that they were fielding their sixth starting offensive line of the season on Sunday. And they didn’t have a lot of wiggle room should one of that starting five go down.

So it was with great relief that the Oline started played wall-to-wall, a rare and welcome sight this season.

From left to right LT Kolton Miller, LG Dylan Parham, C Jackson Powers-Johnson, RG Jordan Meredith, RT DJ Glaze all played 100% of the snaps in the game. This is just the fourth time this season that has happened.

Offense Spec Tms
Player Pos Num Pct Num Pct
Dylan Parham G 65 100% 3 13%
Kolton Miller T 65 100% 3 13%
Jordan Meredith G 65 100% 3 13%
DJ Glaze T 65 100% 3 13%
Jackson Powers-Johnson C 65 100% 0 0%
Gardner Minshew II QB 65 100% 0 0%
Brock Bowers TE 62 95% 0 0%
Tre Tucker WR 58 89% 0 0%
Jakobi Meyers WR 57 88% 0 0%
Michael Mayer TE 34 52% 3 13%
DJ Turner WR 28 43% 14 61%
Ameer Abdullah RB 22 34% 12 52%
Zamir White RB 22 34% 2 9%
Alexander Mattison RB 20 31% 0 0%
Justin Shorter TE 9 14% 12 52%
Terrace Marshall Jr. WR 7 11% 0 0%
Ramel Keyton WR 5 8% 7 30%
Thayer Munford T 1 2% 3 13%
Defense Spec Tms
Player Pos Num Pct Num Pct
Isaiah Pola-Mao FS 68 100% 6 26%
Maxx Crosby DE 68 100% 6 26%
Tre’von Moehrig FS 68 100% 2 9%
Robert Spillane LB 68 100% 0 0%
Decamerion Richardson CB 66 97% 1 4%
Jack Jones CB 58 85% 0 0%
Adam Butler DT 51 75% 6 26%
Charles Snowden DE 46 68% 13 57%
Darnay Holmes CB 46 68% 6 26%
Divine Deablo LB 46 68% 2 9%
John Jenkins DT 35 51% 6 26%
Jonah Laulu DT 33 49% 6 26%
Tyree Wilson DE 23 34% 6 26%
K’Lavon Chaisson LB 19 28% 0 0%
Matthew Butler DT 16 24% 3 13%
Amari Burney LB 13 19% 20 87%
Sam Webb CB 10 15% 5 22%
Thomas Harper FS 9 13% 13 57%
Janarius Robinson DE 3 4% 0 0%
Jakorian Bennett CB 2 3% 0 0%
Special Teams Spec Tms
Player Pos Num Pct Num Pct
Tommy Eichenberg LB 0 0% 20 87%
Amari Gainer LB 0 0% 18 78%
Christopher Smith SS 0 0% 14 61%
Kana’i Mauga LB 0 0% 14 61%
Daniel Carlson K 0 0% 8 35%
AJ Cole III P 0 0% 5 22%
Jacob Bobenmoyer LS 0 0% 5 22%
Andrus Peat G 0 0% 3 13%

 

Jakorian Bennett injury vs Dolphins: Latest news on Raiders CB

TEAMA POSITION PLAYER NAME (ex Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa) is dealing with a [BLANK] injury. Here are the latest updates.

The Raiders are taking on the Dolphins in Miami Sunday and saw another of their starting cornerbacks go down with injury.

Jakorian Bennett injury update

Bennett left in the first quarter with a shoulder injury. He was in a lot of pain. He was was quickly ruled OUT which is a pretty bad sign.

Raiders CB depth chart

The Raiders were already without start nickel corner Nate Hobbs. Darnay Holmes started in his place.

With Bennett out, he was replaced by rookie DeCamerion Richardson.

Jack Jones is the only regular starting cornerback in the game for the Raiders.

Their only remaining cornerback on the roster is Sam Webb, so they can ill afford to suffer any more injuries in this game.

Raiders 2024 midseason awards: Top newcomer, breakout player, best position group, more

It’s the midway mark for the NFL season. And it happens to also be the bye week for the Raiders. So, with that in mind, let’s dole out some awards.

It’s the midway mark for the NFL season. And it happens to also be the bye week for the Raiders. So, with that in mind, let’s dole out some awards.

This was an easy choice. Bowers has been on a record pace this season for rookie tight ends. His 580 yards receiving is best among tight ends and his 57 catches is second in the league at any position behind only Jets WR Garrett Wilson.

Not a lot of competition for this award. But prior to Wilkins’s injury he was one of the best free agent signings of any team this offseason. They’re hoping he can return this season.

He was benched four games into his rookie season. Now he’s playing at a high level as an earned starting cornerback. He hasn’t logged an interception, but he routinely shows great skills and sticky coverage on some very talented deep threats.

No Raiders players are either coming back from a major injury or coming back to previous from off of a down season. Perhaps that will change by season’s end, but for now, there’s simply no one who fits this award.

If you’d prefer to put Luke Getsy here, I get it. But, personally, I don’t think a lot was expected of Getsy. He was not nearly the Raiders top choice for the job and was somehow even worse. Minshew was expected to at least add a steady presence at QB to settle down the offense. He wasn’t seen as someone who would win games for the Raiders, but rather not lose them. And he hasn’t lived up to that.

Not only did he not jump in and take the reins of the offense in camp as the Raiders had hoped, he’s been benched several times this season as he has thrown more interceptions (8) than touchdowns (8).

When all else fails — and it has — at least the Raiders have their kick squad. Daniel Carlson and AJ Cole are still arguably the best kicking duo in the league.

You could also go with “Only good game” as the title of this award. That win in Baltimore looks more and more like a fluke the farther down the line we get from it. Their other win was because Deshaun Watson was so determined to lose it for the Browns. The Ravens game was the only game this season the Raiders actually went out and earned the victory. Not coincidentally, it was also the only game they increased their scoring in the second half.

There were many to choose from for this one. Just pick one, really.

Could go with the home opening loss to the Panthers in which they never led and Andy Dalton led offense to put up 33 points in in the first 47 minutes.

Maybe the Rams where the Raiders turned the ball over four times?

Perhaps the Chiefs game where the running backs averaged less than a yard per carry?

Or the Steelers game where Pittsburgh rattled off 26 unanswered?

Or the Broncos who had a 100-yard pick six and rattled off 34 unanswered?

There’s always this past week against the Bengals when the Raiders gave up scores on the Bengals first five drives — four of which went for touchdowns — and allowed a season-high 41 points?

Too many options to choose from to pick just one.

Best punter in the league. Periodt.

Yes, the best rookie has also been their best offensive player. Not ideal, but there’s no one else who is even a viable candidate for this award.

He won AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in the team’s come-from-behind win in Baltimore in Week two. He’s been battling an ankle injury for several weeks, which has limited his effectiveness, but he’s still their top defender.

Busters for Raiders Week 8 loss to Chiefs

The Raiders had their chances to make this game more competitive, but could never capitalize.

The Chiefs ran away with this game just before the half and never looked back. A 10-7 Raiders lead turned into a 17-10 deficit in just two minutes time. The Raiders had their chances to come back, but couldn’t get out of their own way or were just outmatched.

Busters

OC Luke Getsy

So many wasted opportunities in this game. Let’s start near the end of the second quarter. The Raiders had just fallen down 14-10 with under two minutes left. They had the chance to at very least be the last to have the ball. But instead they went three-and-out. First play was an end around the Chiefs sniffed out for no gain. Then a two-yard run. Then a blitz by the Chiefs that wasn’t picked up, forcing Minshew to throw it away. The Chiefs only needed to use one of their timeouts to get the ball back with a minute left. They used that time to drive for a second score in the final two minutes of the first half. That’s how to suck the air out of the building.

The first possession of the third quarter, the Raiders AGAIN went three-and-out. And it happened in much the same fashion as the previous one – run for minimal gain, short catch for no gain, and free runner on a blitz leading to an incompletion.

Next possession, the Raiders got a gift. First the defense stopped the Chiefs for a three-and-out with just one yard picked up. The punt was fielded near midfield by DJ Turner and returned to the KC 43. A late hit out of bounds tacked on another 15 yards, starting the Raiders out in field goal range at the 28. And despite getting some help from a KC holding penalty, and driving all the way to first and goal at the four, they still couldn’t punch it in. First play inside the five, Getsy had Tre Turner blocking a defensive end, leading to a four-yard loss on the run. Then on third and goal from the seven, he had John Samuel Shenker and Ameer Abdullah trying to block George Karlaftis, who brushed past both of them to get the sack.

Next possession the offense got an even bigger gift. An interception put them right back in first and goal inside the five. A second chance to get right what they got wrong the previous trip. They had the ball at the three, ran it three straight times and were still at the three. Minshew then ran right into a sack for the turnover on downs. 

Understand what happened here. They had been abysmal at running the ball all day, with their backs averaging less than a yard per carry. So, they, of course, ran it three straight times and were held out of the end zone. This time last week, they were having some success running it against the Rams. And in this same situation, they abandoned the run, opting to pass it three straight times and were likewise kept from getting in the end zone. It’s like the only question when it comes to what play(s) to run is what will they least expect. Even though the reason they may not expect it is because it’s just a very bad idea that doesn’t play to your own strengths.

The only times the Raiders were able to score a TD in this game were the opening scripted drive and after they were down by two scores late. Any positive offensive numbers have to take those facts into consideration. That’s not winning football.

LB Robert Spillane

This was tough. On paper, Spillane had a great game. He led the team with 12 combined tackles (six solo) with one for a loss. But just three of those 12 tackles were inside four yards and didn’t result in a first down or touchdown.

He gave up a 13-yard catch on the first third down of the game to open up the Chiefs first touchdown drive. Their second touchdown drive, he again gave up the first down catch on their first third down. Then on third and goal from the five, he gave up the touchdown catch to Travis Kelce over the middle.

The Chiefs got the ball back with just under a minute left until the half. And Spillane gave up a wide open catch to Kelce along the way to them adding a field goal to go up 17-10. He later gave up chunk runs on each the Chiefs’ last two scoring drives.

T DJ Glaze

He gave up run stuff on the opening drive and a sack along with another run stuff that threatened to upend the Raiders’ second scoring drive. Then on their third scoring drive, he was tossed to give up a run stuff for a loss, and was flagged for illegal formation on third and goal. The Chiefs got a sack on the play, but no matter what, the Raiders weren’t scoring on the play because of the Glaze penalty.

CB Jakorian Bennett

Bennett also gave a 20-yard catch and a third down conversion. He just did it on three straight catch to lead out the Chiefs second touchdown drive. He then gave up a 16-yard that put the Chiefs in Raiders territory at the 40 in the final seconds of the second quarter, setting them up for their third score and the second in the final two minutes of the first half.

RB Alexander Mattison

Mattison finished with just 15 yards on 14 carries. Several times it seemed he left yards on the field. And a couple times perhaps even a touchdown. The big one was on third and goal from the one, where it appeared as if, had he run it straight up the gut, he would have just had LB Nick Bolton to go through to cross the goal line. But he went out right instead and was met by half the Chiefs’ defense where he was stopped for a loss.

DT John Jenkins

Credit to Jenkins for getting the tipped ball that led to the Raiders’ only takeaway. But other than that, it was that a great outing for the veteran defensive tackle. He was once again getting pushed all over the field.

He was run through on the first touchdown, then was blocked on an 11-yard shovel pass on the second TD drive. Then gave up two runs on the Chiefs’ final TD drive, including the one that put them in field goal range, and the third down conversion.

DC Patrick Graham

I lost count of how many times a Chiefs receiver was able to find a wide open soft spot in the zone or a running back came out of the backfield completely uncovered for big yards off the dump pass. Both happened multiple times on the back-to-back scoring drives to end the first half. It’s just inexcusable to so many times be wondering how a guy gets so wide open and just who was assigned to him. And coming away thinking maybe no one was and the Chiefs exploited that to the fullest.

See the Ballers

Ballers for Raiders Week 7 loss to Rams

Picking out the individual performances in the Raiders Week 7 loss to the Rams.

At some point we should just call all these Raiders loss to Raiders. Because it doesn’t seem to matter the team in the other jersey, the Raiders real opponent each week is themselves.

That being said, there are a few players who stepped up and did their part to try and pull out the win. Even if their efforts fell short. As per usual, we will start with them before we feature the failures.

Ballers

S Tre’von Moehrig

Moehrig was sent on the blitz several times in this game. To great results. He was sent on third down on the Rams first drive and nailed Matt Stafford to force an incomplete pass. He would then assist on a run stuff for a three-and-out in the second quarter.

He got in the backfield again for a tackle for loss to end a drive early in the third quarter. Then on the Rams’ final two drives, he had a pressure on an incompletion and a run stuff, finishing second on the team with six combined tackles, one for a loss, a QB hit and a pass breakup.

RB Alexander Mattison

Consecutive runs of 13 and 12 yards led out the Raiders’ first scoring drive. He would add a five-yard run later in that drive to help the Raiders jump to a 3-0 lead to begin the second quarter.

After falling down 14-3 late in the second quarter, the Raiders needed to go on a drive. And they did that courtesy of Mattison, who had two runs for a first down and a 17-yard screen that put them in field goal range.

Four runs for 21 yards set the Raiders up for their third score of the game in the third quarter. Mattison had 92 yards on the ground and 123 yards from scrimmage on 26 touches.

CB Nate Hobbs, CB Jakorian Bennett

Tight coverage by Bennett set up a third and long that would lead to a punt on the Rams’ second drive. After the Raiders took a 3-0 lead early in the second, Hobbs’ run stuff on 4th and one gave the Raiders the ball back with a turnover on downs.

Bennett ended the Rams first possession of the third quarter with a three-and-out by breaking up the pass on third down.

With the fourth quarter looming, the Raiders needed a score to give them a chance. They got that score when Robert Spillane got a hand on a pass and Hobbs picked it off and returned it 35 yards to the LA 14-yard-line. That made it a one-score game at 20-12.

The following drive ended with Bennett in tight coverage in the end zone for an incompletion and the field goal missed off the upright. And the final Rams possession ended with Hobbs making the tackle short of the sticks on third down.

TE Brock Bowers

The first time the Raiders got in scoring position in the game was off of his 25-yard catch and run. Most of that was YAC; something he has become known for.

By the time the fourth quarter rolled around, Bowers already had six catches for 64 yards and the Raiders were one score away. They looked to Bowers early and often on their drive to try and tie it up. He had three first down catches on the first five plays. Two plays later, he was the lead blocked on a first down run on fourth down.

He would finish the game with ten catches for 93 yards which was one catch shy of the entire total for the rest of the team (11).

DT Adam Butler

His first tackle was a run stuff at the line that ended the Rams’ second drive. He ended another Rams’ possession in the second quarter with another run stuff. He added another run stop in the fourth quarter to finished tied for second on the team in tackles (6).

K Daniel Carlson

Though it’s never a good thing when your kicker scores all your points, at least he was steady. Carlson made all five of his field goals in the game with the longest coming from 47 yards.

Continue to the Busters…

4 Raiders defenders among NFL elite in key statistics

Four weeks into the season, a handful of Raiders defenders are distinguishing themselves among their peers.

We’re now four weeks into the season. That’s basically a quarter of the way through the NFL season. Thru those four games there are four Raiders defenders sitting among the NFL’s best in key areas.

LB Robert Spillane

Spillane has been on a tear this season. He has double digit tackles in every game, totaling 44 tackles in four games. That puts him third in the league in combined tackles. Here’s the top five:

Nick Cross — 47
EJ Speed — 47
Robert Spillane — 44
Zach Baun — 43
Logan Wilson — 43

CB Jack Jones

Few corners have been more stingy in coverage this season than Jones, who is fifth in the league in coverage DVOA over the first four weeks.

CB Jakorian Bennett

Bennett has been swatting down passes a lot this season. Several of them have been huge plays too. Last week he batted down a would-be first down throw midway through the 4th quarter with the Raiders clinging to a four-point lead. He also regularly sticks with receivers on deep routes to break up what would otherwise have been a long catch or even a touchdown.

In total he has five pass breakups in four games. Which is tied for sixth in the NFL. Here’s the company he keeps:

Paulson Adebo — 7
Brian Branch — 7
Denzel Ward — 7
Zyon McCollum — 6
Quinyon Mitchell — 6
Jakorian Bennett — 5
Michael Jackson — 5
Jaylen Watson — 5

DE Maxx Crosby

Even while being hobbled for one game and missing last week entirely, Crosby is still among the league leaders in tackles for loss. His five tackles for loss this season is tied for fifth.

Kyle Van Noy — 7
Aidan Hutchinson — 6
Patrick Jones — 6
Devonte Wyatt — 6
Maxx Crosby — 5
Dennis Gardeck — 5
Gregory Rousseau — 5
Jared Verse — 5
Bobby Wagner — 5
TJ Watt — 5

3 key matchups for Raiders vs Browns

3 key matchups for Raiders vs Browns

With all the injuries, it can be tough to keep up with who is playing and who is not. But let’s try. Here are some key matchups that figure to play a role in who comes out victorious in this week’s tilt between the Raiders and Browns.

Kolton Miller vs Myles Garrett

The biggest star taking the field in this game is lining up at edge rusher for the Browns. Garrett the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year. He has averaged over 15 sacks per season the past three seasons and already has two this season.

Meanwhile Kolton Miller has looked probably the worst he’s ever looked in Luke Getsy’s new zone blocking scheme. He has already surrendered five sacks this season along with several run stuffs as well. This could get messy if the Raiders aren’t careful.

Jakorian Bennett vs Amari Cooper

Coop is coming off a career-best season in which he put up 1250 yards receiving while averaging 17.4 yards per catch. It earned him his first trip to the Pro Bowl since 2019. Bennett has played pretty well this season and this could be his toughest test yet.

Tyree Wilson vs Dawand Jones

It’s backup vs backup. Who will show they belong? Wilson will be asked to pick up the slack with Maxx Crosby not expected to play. And Jones will be stepping in for the injured Jack Conklin.

Jones started nine games last season and has started the first three this season as well. He has surrendered two sacks in the first three games after giving up three sacks last season. Wilson has 3.5 career sacks, all last season.

Browns QB Deshaun Watson has been terrible this season, but if he has time to throw or room to run around, he can carve up the Raiders. Wilson’s one job will be the keep that from happening.