Projection: The entire 53-man Roster
Let’s start recapping the first and the second cuts.
First cut: Hansley, McCaffrey, J. McGee, Palmer, Burbank, Vaughn, Lott, Townsend Jr., L. Jones, Lotulelei, C. Edwards, Durden, J. Hall, Jacobs.
14 cuts plus G. Holmes to IR gets the roster down to 75 players.
Second cut: Atkinson, T. Jones, Brent, M. Hall, Mickens, O’Malley, Underwood, Bell, Kirkland, McCants, Omoile, Iddings, Jackson, Cowser, Bates, Wilson, Hamilton, Hackett, Dewey McDonald, East, Tavecchio.
These cuts get the Raiders down to 54 players. That includes Aldon already being on the suspended list, and Reece will join him on that list after the fourth preseason game, bringing the active roster down to 53 players.
Next, using players that failed to make the cut, we’ll put together the 10-man practice squad.
Practice Squad: (RB) Richard, (WR) Brent, (G) Omoile, (T) Kirkland, (DE) Iddings, (DE) Jackson, (LB/DE) Cowser, (LB) Wilson, (CB) Hamilton, (S) Hackett.
It wouldn’t be surprising to see McKenzie poach a few players from other teams cuts for the practice squad, so keep that in mind as an option.
And here is the *53-man roster:
QB: Carr, McGloin, Cook
RB: Murray, Washington, Richard
FB: *Reece, Olawale
WR: Cooper, Crabtree, Roberts, Holmes, Holton
TE: Walford, Smith, Rivera
OL: Penn, Osemele, Hudson, Jackson, Watson, Howard, Feliciano, Alexander
DL: Mack, Williams, Edwards Jr., Ellis, Autry, Orr, Ward, McGee, Latham
LB: *A. Smith, Heeney, Irvin, M. Smith, Ball, Calhoun, James, Toomer
CB: Smith, Amerson, Carrie, Hayden, Thorpe, Dexter McDonald
S: Joseph, Nelson, Allen, McGill, Trawick
ST: Janikowski, King, Condo
*Reece and Aldon are suspended and don’t count towards the active 53-man roster. For that reason, 55 players are included above — so two players eventually would have to be released to make room for both Reece and Aldon. Assuming the team wants to bring both players back.
The toughest decisions were between Atkinson/Jones/Richard, if the team will carry nine offensive lineman or not, which of the three special teams studs (Bates, Toomer, Trawick) make it, and the fourth safety spot.
Next: Raiders 53-man Roster Projection: Dead Money & Cap Savings