When Pete Carroll and John Spytek took over for the Las Vegas Raiders this offseason, one of the first things that they did was reconstruct the roster, particularly the defensive backfield. Before the preseason even began, all five starters in the secondary from opening day of last season were gone.
Tre'Von Moehrig, Nate Hobbs, Jack Jones and Marcus Epps all left the building, and Jakorian Bennett was eventually traded. While they bolstered the safety room with the free agency signing of Jeremy Chinn, they did very little to address the cornerback position.
The new brass signed a former first-round draft bust in Eric Stokes and took a gamble on a project in the third round of the draft by taking Darien Porter. Depth pieces like Darnay Holmes, Kyu Blu Kelly and Decamerion Richardson stayed in the building, but things were bleak with no true veteran.
Raiders CB group has chance to make major statement against Cowboys
However, this group has shocked some people this year. Stokes has played at an incredibly high level during the 2025 NFL season, allowing a quarterback rating of just 76.8 when targeted. He's relinquished only 138 receiving yards and one touchdown this year while breaking up 3 passes.
Kelly had a rough start to the year and even got benched for Porter at one point. But he rebounded against the Denver Broncos in Week 10 by intercepting two of Bo Nix's passes in primetime, which perhaps made fans rethink how hard they had been on the young player so early in his career.
Porter, after not getting much of a chance to start the year, has played well in limited opportunities. He has given up just 8 catches for 91 yards on 218 defensive snaps, allowing a quarterback rating of 89.2 when targeted this season.
After an offseason in which the fan base clamored for the Raiders to add help to this room, they have overcome some early bumps and bruises to become an above-average unit. The future is certainly bright here too, as Stokes is only 26 years old, and both Kelly and Porter are just 24.
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This group played well against good offenses like the New England Patriots, Chicago Bears, Denver Broncos and Los Angeles Chargers, but struggled against others like the Indianapolis Colts, Kansas City Chiefs and Jacksonville Jaguars.
In Week 11 against the Dallas Cowboys, however, this group has a chance to completely rewrite its story. Another dominant performance against a great offense like the Cowboys', in primetime, no less, would go a long way in permanently changing the narrative in Las Vegas.
It won't be easy, as Dallas boasts the fourth-highest scoring offense in the league, as well as arguably the best passing attack with Dak Prescott. Covering star wide receivers like CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens, as well as tight end Jake Ferguson, will be no easy task for the Raiders' young crew.
Ahead of the Monday Night Football matchup, Porter spoke to the media in the locker room after Thursday's practice. When asked about the looming matchup with Lamb and Pickens, he assured fans that he and the cornerback group are embracing the challenge.
"It will be a good challenge, but I think myself and the rest of the guys in the room really embrace that and look forward to it," Porter said. "Take it day by day and we'll see what happens."
If what happens on Monday is anything like what happened last Thursday, then this previously unherladed Raiders unit might just become the silver lining in an another lost campaign for Las Vegas.