The Las Vegas Raiders' defense looked good through the first four weeks of the season, outside of an outlier performance on a short week against the Washington Commanders. The unit looked like it could truly be a strength of the team amid the offensive struggles despite low expectations.
They had been relatively healthy; however, Eric Stokes was forced to leave their Week 4 game due to a knee injury. While his status for Week 5 was in question, it appeared that the Raiders would have the rest of their defensive core.
That changed just two days before facing the Indianapolis Colts, as it was announced that Germaine Pratt would not travel with the team for non-injury reasons. While the original assumption was that his absence was due to personal reasons, Pete Carroll announced his release the day after the 40-6 loss.
Patrick Graham does not seem happy about Raiders releasing Germaine Pratt
Pratt was on the field for 88.2% of the Raiders' defensive snaps over the first four weeks of the season, so fans were, naturally, shocked to find out he had been released so suddenly after playing such a big role.
Las Vegas' defensive coordinator, Patrick Graham, discussed the move during his press conference on Thursday, and it seems like he was not happy to lose one of his most utilized pieces.
"Coach already talked about that. So, you know, love having good players around and then, you know, it is what it is when we make decisions," Graham said.
Raiders fans are used to Graham being fairly upbeat and positive during press conferences, so to see him a bit downtrodden and frustrated was new. Tensions are certainly building as the team's losing streak ensues, and perhaps his attitude was not directly reflective of how he felt about the move.
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But it was certainly an interesting look for the veteran defensive play-caller. When discussing how he intended to replace Pratt, Graham echoed Carroll's sentiment, stressing that it will take a collective effort.
"I'm looking forward to the defense stepping up, just in general," Graham said. "Just the linebacker position, you know, it's going to take all 11 out there. We'll see who's out there playing and things of that nature, but it's going to take a, you know, good effort to replace a good player like that."
Pratt recorded 25 total tackles, ten solo tackles, one tackle for loss and two passes defended over the Raiders' first four games. While his numbers and Pro Football Focus grade of 56.7 were nothing special, it was clear that the defense missed his impact in Week 5's blowout loss.
His absence led to Elandon Roberts playing a season-high 93.9% of the defensive snaps, and Jamal Adams also played a season-high 54.5% of the defensive snaps. The two linebackers will both likely maintain their increase in playing time alongside Devin White.
Las Vegas also signed linebacker Jon Rhattigan to their active roster and versatile linebacker and defensive end Jamin Davis to their practice squad this week to help mitigate this loss. Hopefully, Graham has a trick up his sleeve, or this loss may continue to weigh on the defense.