A storyline heading into every preseason NFL game, at least for the first two weeks anymore, is how much a team's starters will or won't play. There's a risk-reward equation to calculate, especially after having a joint practice, as the Las Vegas Raiders and Houston Texans did before their Thursday game.
With the idea that there was work to be done that could only be achieved with game reps, Klint Kubiak made it clear that starters would play plenty this preseason. After a rough session against a very good Texans team, though, Kubiak said, "we'll see" regarding whether starters would play this week.
However, in some specific cases, like Fernando Mendoza, and with regard to the tape from Tuesday's practice as a factor, Kubiak also made it clear that some key players and starters will be available to play in the second week of the preseason against Houston, depending on where they stand.
What to expect from Raiders' starters vs. Texans in preseason Week 2
Here's what Kubiak said when asked if Mendoza's extensive reps with the first-team offense would limit his playing time in Thursday's exhibition.
"It does not. He's going to get lots of reps this preseason. He needs every one of them."
The Texans lost second-year wide receiver Jayden Higgins for the season due to a torn ACL during Tuesday's joint practice. According to Jonathan Alexander of the Houston Chronicle, that seems to have pushed head coach DeMeco Ryans to change plans and rest most of his starters this week.
But another Houston reporter, Aaron Wilson, said that the Texans' offensive starters will play, while the defensive starters will rest. Perhaps that says a lot about how things went during joint practices on Tuesday.
On the Raiders' side, it's fair to assume that guys like Brock Bowers, Ashton Jeanty and Maxx Crosby won't play a ton against the Texans, if at all. Kirk Cousins playing or not will go a long way in determining what happens with Bowers and Jeanty, even if Mendoza plays a lot.
However, someone like Caleb Rogers, who can make a strong case to be the Raiders' starting right guard with Jackson Powers-Johnson not suiting up due to an injury, is in line to play a lot on Thursday night.
Others who are battling for a roster spot or a rotational role are lined up to play plenty as well, as some are purely in search of a better performance than they had in the preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals.
Focusing back on how much Raiders' starters will play on Thursday night, though, Kubiak suggested that it'll be on a to-be-determined (and to be seen in the game), case-by-case basis. That makes a lot of sense for where this team is right now.
What fans can comfortably expect to see is plenty of Mendoza under center, followed by quite a bit of Aidan O'Connell after him. However long Mendoza plays (perhaps the entire first half?), many key offensive players (this side of Bowers and Jeanty, anyway) would likely be alongside him.
The Texans changing their plans and not playing very many of their starters is unlikely to, and really should not, have any impact on what the Raiders do with their starters on Thursday night.
Kubiak was less definitive about playing starters than he was heading into the opener, but that just proves how ever-changing circumstances have to be the driver of preseason playing time decisions.
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