In all honesty, most of the young players on the Las Vegas Raiders' 2025 roster should get somewhat of a pass for how things went last season. This is especially true for offensive linemen like DJ Glaze and Jackson Powers-Johnson, who took big steps back under Pete Carroll and his coaching staff.
And while the Raiders added plenty of competition on the interior, John Spytek and the front office boldly decided to run it back with the same crew of offensive tackles, letting Stone Forsythe walk and adding only a slew of undrafted free agents to compete with Glaze, Kolton Miller and Charles Grant.
But this decision seems to be coming back to bite the Silver and Black already. Every sign from training camp thus far indicates that Glaze is struggling in a big way. It may take some reshuffling for Las Vegas to feel completely good about its group up front heading into the 2026 NFL season.
DJ Glaze is struggling at right tackle during Raiders training camp
Throughout the offseason program, Glaze was penciled in at right tackle ahead of 2025 third-rounder Charles Grant, who looked promising in very limited opportunities last year. However, The Athletic's Sam Warren made it clear that Glaze has been one of the biggest letdowns of training camp.
"The right tackle has had trouble with the Raiders’ pass rushers, as Crosby and Malcolm Koonce have had sacks against him. Pressure has noticeably been stronger from Glaze’s side as compared to Kolton Miller on the left. Crosby also got by Glaze on Sunday for a run stop of Ashton Jeanty."
Losing a handful of reps to Crosby isn't exactly a blinking red warning light. Everybody loses to that guy. But giving up a sack to Koonce and consistently having his side of the pocket look worse than the other is a telltale sign that Glaze is truly struggling, and perhaps in need of some competition.
ESPN's Ryan McFadden also noted that Glaze has endured some lumps in the run game as well, with Crosby swerving past him to make some run stops. Glaze's troubles continued in pads on Sunday when he gave up another sack and continued to let Crosby wreck the Raiders' offensive momentum.
After giving up 10 sacks during his second NFL season, according to Pro Football Focus, which was the second-most in the league, Glaze should be on the hot seat. This is a make-or-break season for him, and it is a shame that he seems to be the only player on the roster not competing for his spot.
Las Vegas, however, may have an ace in the hole.
Raiders are beginning to give Trey Zuhn reps at second-team right tackle
Rookie Trey Zuhn III, being his ever-versatile self, was moved around quite a bit on the interior through the first three training camp practices. But it wasn't until after Glaze started really struggling that the Raiders began moving Zuhn III, who was announced on draft night as a guard, out to right tackle.
For the last two sessions, including Monday's padded practice, Zuhn III has been running with the second-team offense as the right tackle, despite playing right guard with the third group and center with the twos earlier in camp. This hardly feels like a coincidence.
In college, Zuhn III played left tackle at Texas A&M, but he also slid inside to center at times. Las Vegas' original plan seemed to be settling him in at guard and having him compete with a handful of others for a spot, but desperation may force him back to the outside early in his career.
Grant could always be an option as well, as the William & Mary product was touted as a swing tackle coming out of college. So far in the NFL, however, Grant has exclusively played left tackle behind Kolton Miller, and no reports have mentioned him playing right tackle. He seems to be Miller's backup.
So, Zuhn III is really the only card that the Raiders have to play in terms of potentially replacing Glaze if he continues to play poorly. At least, in the building, that is. Las Vegas could always tap into the open market for a veteran right tackle, but that would feel like an extreme measure at this point.
Simply put, the way Glaze has been playing at training camp thus far won't cut it, and Zuhn III may very well be hot on his tail. The Raiders failing to add another right tackle into the mix to compete with Glaze may blow up the plan on the offensive line, moving an option at guard to the outside.
Luckily, Zuhn III was drafted with his versatility in mind, and hopefully, Rick Dennison's unit is built to survive some early bumps in training camp. But Glaze can't keep performing as poorly as he had, otherwise, Spytek and Co. will have some questions to answer.
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