Green Bay Packers at Oakland Raiders: 3 players to watch

Anthony Rush

Over the early stages of the preseason, one standout thus far has been defensive tackle Anthony Rush. Once the Eagles cut Rush three weeks ago, the Raiders immediately stepped into the ‘Rush sweepstakes’ to get the deal done with the 350-pound lineman, and they just may have struck gold.

Rush hit the ground running once he put on the silver and black. In his preseason debut he delivered three solo tackles, making it apparent that he can bulldoze his way into the backfield stuffing the run. He didn’t record a sack, but he did in fact apply constant pressure on the Ram’s quarterbacks. Following his breakthrough performance, he totaled two tackles in game No.2.

Like I stated earlier, 13 sacks isn’t sufficient enough for the Raiders to compete in 2019. With his ability from the interior position to be a constant push on the inside, that’s something that Gruden and Paul Guenther have to be salivating over.

“He’s caused some tackles for a loss and pushed the pocket pretty good,” Gruden told reporters. “We like him.”

Rush will have to keep his foot on the accelerator in order to make the final cut. If he can continue his consistent play, Rush has a legitimate shot to steal one of the defensive tackle positions on the final 53-man roster.