News and notes from Raiders mini-camp
By Evan Groat
News and notes from day one of Oakland Raiders mandatory mini-camp.
After wrapping up three weeks of organized team activities, the Oakland Raiders got back to work on Tuesday with the start of a three-day mandatory mini-camp. Here is a collection of the latest news and updates from day one.
Key players missing time
We are still months away from meaningful football games but it is never good to see players being held out of workouts. Reports out of day one of mini-camp say that several players were seen on the sidelines observing as spectators while continuing to rehab from offseason surgeries.
That list includes Jon Feliciano, Marshall Newhouse, Austin Howard, Jihad Ward, Darius Latham, and Ben Heeney. Some of the names of this list are expected, but for others, not the case. Feliciano suffered an apparent knee injury during OTA’s last week and could be sidelined the remainder of spring workouts.
Two names that are a bit alarming to see as non-participants are Marshall Newhouse and Jihad Ward. Newhouse is in a battle for the right tackle job and Jihad Ward is a raw second-year player who was a non-factor in his rookie season. Without knowing the severity of the injuries, we can only speculate at this point.
In the case of Ward, getting as many reps as possible will only benefit his development into a quality defensive lineman, a position the Raiders desperately need production from in 2017. Seventh-round rookie Trevyon Hester reaped the benefits with Ward out, receiving some of the first-team reps and impressing with the work he was given.
Coach Del Rio was asked about the growth Treyvon Hester has shown over the course of the spring:
"“He’s done a good job. For all the big guys, it’s more about what we do when the pads come on. But he looks like he’s got a natural ability to rush inside, interior push. And I look forward to seeing that with pads.”"
As for Newhouse, he was believed to be in the early lead for right tackle, but if he continues to miss time it will lead to valuable opportunities running for Vadal Alexander, which was the case today.