Raiders: Players in danger of losing their starting jobs to 2022 draft picks
Raiders: Players in danger of losing their starting jobs to 2022 draft picks
Brandon Parker
Let’s get the obvious out of the way first.
It’s still unclear where second-year offensive lineman Alex Leatherwood will start, which is important in filling out the rest of the offensive line. If Leatherwood continues at right guard, Parker will be starting at right tackle; However, if Leatherwood is moved back to the right tackle spot he was originally drafted to play, Jermaine Eluemunor likely takes over at right guard.
The Raiders shelled out $3.5M to retain Brandon Parker this upcoming season, so I have to assume it’s more likely that not Parker is the current favorite to start, making Leatherwood the right guard. Either way, the player who isn’t Leatherwood would be the pick.
To be blunt, Parker was a notable weakness in an already struggling line as a whole, except for Kolton Miller.
Parker allowed 8 sacks and committed 9 penalties last season, which are both bottom-of-the-barrel numbers, to begin with, but it gets worse. Parker played 880 snaps last season, which may sound close to a season’s total until you realize three Raiders tallied over 1,100 snaps, with none of the three surpassing Parker’s sacks allowed mark.
Two things hurt Parker’s chance of retaining a starting job at right tackle:
- The offensive linemen [projected to be] available around pick no.86, when the Raiders are finally on the clock, with right tackle Abraham Lucas and guard Ed Ingram likely headlining the bunch.
- Leatherwood’s versatility. I note Ingram as an option to take Parker’s starting job, but it would actually be Alex Leatherwood in the event Ingram gets taken 86th overall. Leatherwood would move to right tackle, and Ingram plays guard.
The good news for Parker: that $3.5M he’s getting this upcoming season does show faith from the organization, and should help him sleep a bit more soundly.