The Las Vegas Raiders learned a lot about themselves during their three-game preseason slate. Pete Carroll and John Spytek wanted competition on this Raiders roster, and they had no shortage of it this preseason as they tinkered with the roster constantly.
However, now is the hard part. The team's new leadership has to cut the team down from 91 to 53 by Tuesday, and they can only keep so many players around on the practice squad. Here is our final attempt to predict Las Vegas' 53-man roster after the preseason finale.
Raiders final 53-man roster prediction
Offense
Quarterback (3): Geno Smith, VETERAN BACKUP**, Cam Miller
O'Connell's devastating injury has left the team in need of a suitable No. 2 quarterback on the depth chart. Smith is the undisputed starter, and Miller is clearly in need of development. It will be interesting to see who Las Vegas kicks the tires on.
Running back (4): Ashton Jeanty, Raheem Mostert, Zamir White, Dylan Laube
Unfortunately, Raider Nation may have to say goodbye to Sincere McCormick, which will be a painful cut considering how much promise he showed last season. However, he got lost in the shuffle behind White and Mostert, and Laube has been too valuable as a special teamer to get the boot.
Wide receiver (6): Jakobi Meyers, Tre Tucker, Dont'e Thornton Jr., Jack Bech, Alex Bachman, Tommy Mellott
Bachman and Mellott are pretty similar players, but the former is ready to go right now, and the latter may be too valuable to subject to waivers. This leaves veterans like Collin Johnson and Phillip Dorsett on the outside looking in, but Meyers, Tucker and Thornton will eat up most of the snaps anyway.
Tight end (3): Brock Bowers, Michael Mayer, Ian Thomas
Thomas rebounded with a strong game in the preseason finale against the Cardinals. If the team decides to only keep five wideouts for whatever reason, look for the Raiders to sneak on another tight end like Carter Runyon, Qadir Ismail or Albert Okwuegbunam.
Offensive line (9): Kolton Miller, Dylan Parham, Jordan Meredith, Jackson Powers-Johnson, DJ Glaze, Alex Cappa, Charles Grant, Caleb Rogers, Laki Tasi
This is the same group we've predicted for weeks, as Tasi has been simply too good to ignore. Thayer Munford Jr., on the other hand, has been hard to ignore in a bad way, so he ends up being cut by the Raiders in this projection.
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Defense
Defensive end (4): Maxx Crosby, Malcolm Koonce, Tyree Wilson, Charles Snowden*
Koonce finally flashed in the final preseason game, and Wilson has been a force all preseason. Snowden should make the roster based on ability alone, but he may have a looming suspension from the NFL for an off-the-field incident. If he's indeed suspended, the team may need to find another solution, at least temporarily.
Defensive tackle (6): Adam Butler, Jonah Laulu, Thomas Booker IV, Leki Fotu, Tonka Hemingway, J.J. Pegues
Zachary Carter is a surprise cut from this group, as he was an effective rotational defensive tackle last season. However, other players have emerged around him, and Fotu looked good in his return from injury on Saturday. Rookies Hemingway and Pegues also look ready to go, as does Booker.
Linebacker (5): Elandon Roberts, Germaine Pratt, Devin White, Jamal Adams, Tommy Eichenberg
No real surprises here. Eichenberg could potentially be supplanted, and White could be a shocking cut based on Adams' emergence. However, Jaylon Smith did not show enough this preseason to earn a spot, nor did players like Cody Lindenberg, Matt Jones, Amari Gainer or Michael Barrett.
Cornerback (6): Eric Stokes, Darien Porter, Decamerion Richardson, Kyu Blu Kelly, Greedy Vance Jr., VETERAN CB**
Las Vegas is kidding itself if it doesn't think it needs a veteran outside cornerback in this room. Stokes and Kelly have been solid, but Porter and Richardson left too much to be desired to be depended on in 2025. Vance outplayed Darnay Holmes and should hold on to the slot corner job.
Safety (4): Jeremy Chinn, Isaiah Pola-Mao, Terrell Edmunds, Chris Smith II
Carroll certainly loves his safeties, but there are not more than four rosterable players at the position currently on the roster. Lonnie Johnson Jr. should make a nice impact if he can return this season, but Trey Taylor and the rest of the unit are better suited as practice squad players, at best.
Special teams (3): A.J. Cole, Daniel Carlson, Jacob Bobenmoyer
As always, no surprises.