Oakland Raiders Preseason Week 2: Winners and Losers

Aug 22, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater (5) and Oakland Raiders quarterback Christian Ponder (9) talk after the game at TCF Bank Stadium. The Minnesota Vikings beat the Oakland Raiders 20-12. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

On Saturday night, the Raiders lost a weird, weather-interrupted preseason game to the Minnesota Vikings 20-12. Despite scoring the first points of the game, the Raiders put together a mostly sloppy effort marred by penalties and mental errors. The team will have a lot to look at on tape and work on in practice this week in Alameda.

Preseason games are meaningless but not completely unimportant. As 90 players continue to compete for 53 active roster spots, and as the coaches and front office cut players and bring in new ones in order to find the best possible roster for the 2015 season, players have the opportunity to use preseason games to decide their future as Raiders and as NFL players. Other players, assured of roster spots, can use preseason games to show progression from a season ago, and from week to week as they prepare for the season.

On Saturday a few players emerged trending upwards even despite the loss, while others emerged as trending downward. Here are a few of the winners and losers from Saturday’s losing effort in Minneapolis:

Next: Winner: Latavius Murray