Raiders training camp eve: How many roster spots are actually available?

What skill position spots are up for grabs?

As far as these positions are concerned, I see that there is no drama at either the quarterback or running back positions. The team will keep two quarterbacks, Minshew and O’Connell, and either Carter Bradley or Anthony Brown Jr. will remain on the practice squad and serve as the team’s emergency QB. 

The same goes for the running back room; Zamir White figures to be the lead back and Alexander Mattison will serve as his complement. Rookie Dylan Laube should factor into both the return and receiving game, and veteran Ameer Abdullah will likely remain on the roster as a special teams ace.

The only drama at the skill positions, as far as I am concerned, is at the bottom of the depth chart for both the wide receiver and tight end positions. The Raiders have a handful of undrafted rookies competing for the final spot in the receiver room alongside Davante Adams, Jakobi Meyers, Tre Tucker, Michael Gallup and Jalen Guyton, but this position will likely go to one of two players.

Kristian Wilkerson, who made the initial 53-man roster last season after an impressive preseason, or DJ Turner, who has made his mark on special teams. My gut says that Antonio Pierce will value a guy who gets down and dirty on special teams more than another wideout, so I predict that Turner will make the team. There is a scenario where the Raiders only keep five receivers because of Brock Bowers’ versatility, and they keep an extra player at another position. 

It is no secret that Luke Getsy loves his tight ends. It has been talked about all offseason how many multi-tight end sets Getsy ran in Chicago last season, and for that reason, I see the team keeping at least four tight ends on the active roster. Bowers, Michael Mayer and Harrison Bryant are shoo-ins to make the team, but there are three other tight ends on the roster, and at least one more will be a Raider.

Cole Fotheringham was the only one of the group who had a catch last season, as John Samuel Shenker is yet to appear in an NFL game and Zach Gentry did not get a target in 2023. However, Fotheringham only had a single catch, and it was the only one of his career. Gentry has the most impressive resume of the three, so I think that he will make the team as the fourth tight end, but it would not shock me at all to see Getsy keep a fifth, which would be Fotheringham.