With Richie Incognito shelved for the year, the Raiders are in ‘Good’ hands
By Brad Weiss
Richie Incognito will miss the rest of the 2020 NFL season, but the Las Vegas Raiders are in ‘Good’ hands with his replacement.
The saga that has been Richie Incognito’s 2020 season came to a close on Monday, as the Las Vegas Raiders announced that he would have surgery to end his year. Incognito, who played so well for the Raiders after coming back into the league last year, had been hobbled since Week 2, and Las Vegas had to figure out life without him.
Offensive line coach Tom Cable has done a great job this season with the big men up front, piecing together starting fives nearly every week due to injuries and COVID-19. They remain one of the best lines in the league even when they are missing players, which, on some occasions, meant three guys being on the shelf.
With Incognito done for the year, the Raiders will turn to a player who has been outstanding in his own right in 2020.
Denzelle Good takes over at left guard permanently
Denzelle Good has been with the Raiders since 2018, and since Week 2 of the 2020 NFL slate, he has been on the field for 100 percent of the snaps. Not only is he proving to be durable for a Raiders team that has been so banged up, but he is also playing at a high level, making the loss of Incognito a softer blow than it could have been.
The Raiders signed Good back in January on a one-year deal, but he is definitely playing his way into another contract with the team. He has the size to play tackle, but has been outstanding at guard this season, and is a much younger option than Incognito moving forward.
Both Good and Brandon Parker, another guy expect to only provide depth, have been keys to an offensive line that has protected Derek Carr at an elite level in 2020.
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The hope is that Las Vegas will get Trent Brown back for the Atlanta game so the team should have their permanent starting lineup moving forward. Kolton Miller, Good, Rodney Hudson, Gabe Jackson, and Brown are an elite starting five, and one that should propel the Raiders to their second playoff appearance since the 2002 season.