Kolton Miller among five Raiders starting training camp on PUP list

Kolton Miller among five Raiders starting training camp on PUP list

The Raiders will begin training camp shorthanded along their offensive line. Tuesday evening the team announced they were placing five players on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list to begin camp. Three of whom are offensive linemen. Two are expected starters.

The five are:

LT Kolton Miller
G Jackson Powers-Johnson
G Jake Johanning
WR Jalen Guyton
LB Darien Butler

Expected to line up in place of Miller with the first team at left tackle is new addition Andrus Peat. Lining up with the first team at left guard figures to continue to be Cody Whitehair.

The team also announced the retirement of WR Michael Gallup. Along with Guyton not practicing, that puts the Raiders a tad thin at wide receiver, barring any moves to replace Gallup on the roster.

Raiders LT Kolton Miller ranked outside top 12 offensive tackles in NFL

Raiders LT Kolton Miller ranked outside top 12 offensive tackles in NFL

Kolton Miller might be one of the NFL’s most underrated players. The former UCLA star has improved every season that he’s been in the league and routinely shuts down the top pass rushers in the conference. But where does he rank among his peers?

In a recent article by Jeremy Fowler of ESPN, he spoke with dozens of NFL executives, coaches, and decision-makers and asked them to rank the top 10 players at every position.

During the offensive tackle section, it was fascinating to see that Miller was ranked outside the top 12 offensive tackles. However, one AFC executive did have several positive things to say about the former first-round pick from UCLA:

“Improved quickly over course of his career. Good in both run and pass. Struggled with anchor early in his career and has improved to a Pro Bowl-level player.” — veteran AFC personnel man

The Raiders are very fortunate to have Miller protecting the blindside of whoever is behind center in Las Vegas. And his improvement in the run game has allowed him to become one of the most complete tackles in the league. Entering Year 7, expect Miller to be even better this season as his growth has been linear to date.

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Raiders LT Kolton Miller named among best NFL draft picks in last decade

Raiders LT Kolton Miller named among best NFL draft picks in last decade

In a recent article by Pro Football Focus, they took a look at the best picks at every spot in Round 1. At pick No. 15, they selected Kolton Miller, who has been one of the top left tackles in the NFL over the last several years. Here is what the site had to say about his career so far with Las Vegas:

The Raiders didn’t get many draft picks right during the Jon Gruden era, but Kolton Miller turned out to be a big hit. He has recorded single-season PFF blocking grades above 80.0 for each of the last three seasons.

There weren’t many other standouts to consider here, which means 2024 rookie Laiatu Latu has a chance to make a name for himself as the most recent No. 15 pick.

Miller was an incredible athlete coming out of UCLA, but he was far from a polished player. But Miller managed to improve his game every year with the Raiders and is now widely viewed as one of the top tackles in the league.

The Raiders certainly don’t have a ton of success stories when it comes to their Round 1 selections, but Miller is a massive hit. Here is to hoping that the Raiders can find more Kolton Millers in the NFL Draft for years to come.

Raiders LT Kolton Miller ranked as top 10 offensive tackle by PFF

Raiders LT Kolton Miller ranked as top 10 offensive tackle by PFF

The Raiders have been able to revamp their offensive line in one offseason after the selection of Jackson Powers-Johnson and the development of Thayer Munford. They wanted to get bigger and tougher up front and they accomplished that goal.

But one of the reasons why they were able to so quickly improve the offensive line was because of Kolton Miller. The former first-round pick from the 2018 NFL Draft has established himself as one of the top tackles in the league and makes everyone around him better.

In a recent article by Pro Football Focus, they ranked the top 32 offensive tackles in the NFL heading into the 2024 season. Not surprisingly, Miller finished high on the list, coming in at No. 10. Here is what the site had to say about the veteran left tackle from UCLA:

Miller gave up pressure on just 4.0% of dropbacks in 2023, tied for the fifth-best rate among offensive tackles in the NFL. This is even more impressive, given that Miller was slowed down by an injury over the second half of the season. Over the last four years, Miller’s 87.1 pass-blocking grade ranks third among left tackles during that period.

The veteran presence of Miller, along with Andre James, gives the Raiders a solid floor on the offensive line. Those two players have been outstanding for the past several seasons and have made the transition process much easier on the offensive line.

Miller has managed to improve every season in the NFL and it wouldn’t be a shock if he took another step forward in 2024. He is among the very best left tackles in all of the league and is only getting better.

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What Condition the Position is in: Assessing Raiders level of need at OT ahead of free agency

What Condition Raiders Position is in: Offensive tackle

With free agency under 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, Thayer Munford
Depth: Dalton Wagner, DJ Fluker, Jalen McKenzie
Free Agents: Jermaine Eluemunor, Brandon Parker

Miller was his usual mainstay at left tackle, outside of missing five starts due to injury. Right tackle was manned by Eluemunor for the second consecutive season. Munford filled in at both tackle spots as needed.

Condition: Serious

No worries at left tackle. But right tackle is a concern. They can limit that concern by bringing back Eluemunor, but regardless seeking an upgrade at that spot would be smart. Eluemunor can play tackle or guard and is a good piece to have around. Munford has also shown potential, but it would not be smart to move forward with him as the only option at such a crucial spot.

Raiders, Chiefs final injury report: TE Michael Mayer OUT

Raiders TE Michael Mayer OUT, Josh Jacobs Questionable vs Chiefs

While the Raiders may get a few offensive starters back this week against the Chiefs, they will lose another. Tight end Michael Mayer is officially OUT with a toe injury.

They will for sure see the return of center Andre James who was removed from the injury report after missing the previous two weeks with an ankle injury.

Still Questionable are left tackle Kolton Miller (shoulder) and RB Josh Jacobs.

Jaacobs seemed on the path to returning this week and head coach Antonio Pierce seemed optimistic he would play earlier this week, but after a day back at practice, he was sidelined again, so once again, his status is uncertain.

Jack Jones landed on the injury report Saturday with a knee injury after not being on the injury report before that. He too is Questionable for the game.

The Chiefs will for sure be without three players. RB Jerrick McKinnon, WR Kadarius Toney, and T Donovan Smith are all OUT. WR Mecole Hardman began his 21-day window to return from injured reserve, but will not be activated this week.

Raiders, Chiefs Thursday injury report: LT Kolton Miller returns to practice

Raiders LT Kolton Miller returns to practice

Wednesday Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce expressed optimism the Raiders would get back three offensive starters this week — RB Josh Jacobs, LT Kolton Miller, and C Andre James.

Two out of three aint bad.

Thursday saw Miller and James return to the practice field. Jacobs was still not practicing, though there are still two more practices for him to return.

The Chiefs also got their left tackle back. Donovan Smith practiced Thursday.

Missing for the Chiefs were LB Nick Bolton, LB Cam Jones, RB Jerrick McKinnon, WR Kadarious Toney.

Missing for the Raiders Thursday along with Jacobs were DE Maxx Crosby (knee), TE Michael Mayer (toe), G Dylan Parham (illness), and RS DJ Turner (shoulder).

We all know Crosby is going to play. He wouldn’t miss any games, let alone against his favorite QB Patrick Mahomes. We’ll wait and see with everyone else.

Raiders HC Antonio Pierce expresses confidence Josh Jacobs will play vs Chiefs

Raiders HC Antonio Pierce expresses confidence Josh Jacobs will play vs Chiefs

Playing hurt is something Josh Jacobs has done a lot of in his career. In fact, he’s become known for playing some of his best football when he’s banged up late in the season. Which should tell you something about how injured he was against the Vikings two weeks ago.

He suffered a knee injury early in the game, fought through it for a while before eventually leaving the game and not returning. The Raiders lost the game 3-0.

When the Charger came to town four days later, Jacobs was not ready to go and was rendered inactive for the game.

Now with the team having a 11 days between that Thursday night game and their Christmas Day game at Arrowhead, head coach Antonio Pierce doesn’t see Jacobs missing this one.

“I think he was close the last week,” Pierce said of Jacobs. “That was a decision we all made in the best interest of him. For himself. If I had to be a betting man, I would think he would play this game.”

Along with Jacobs, there were two Raiders starting offensive linemen who also didn’t play last week — left tackle Kolton Miller and center Andre James.

“Same deal,” Pierce said of Miller and James. “If I was a betting man, those guys are going through the process. This is a game you want to play in now. You don’t want to be sitting at home watching it on television, you want to be there.”

Keep in mind, the Raiders have yet to practice this week, so this could just be unbridled optimism by Pierce. A combination of the long week off and this being the big annual Arrowhead matchup with a suddenly very vulnerable looking Chiefs team.

Raiders vs Chargers final injury report: LT Kolton Miller, C Andre James OUT

LT Kolton Miller, C Andre James OUT for Raiders. WR Keenan Allen OUT for Chargers

It’s a short week for the Raiders and Chargers who meet Thursday night. That means it isn’t much time for injuries to heal. As such, both teams will be without a few starters and in danger of being without a few more.

The Raiders today officially ruled out left tackle Kolton Miller and center Andre James. In addition, Josh Jacobs was listed as questionable after missing the entire week with a quad injury.

Showing up on the injury report was Davante Adams with an illness.

Thayer Munford will start at left tackle for the Raiders, Dylan Parham will start at center and Jordan Meredith will start at left guard (replacing Parham).

The Chargers will be without WR Keenan Allen. They were already without Justin Herbert who was placed on injured reserve this week. So, replacement Easton Stick will now not have their best receiver on the field as he makes his first career start.