Sunday was a rough day for the Las Vegas Raiders, and that included a tough week for the rookies. Third-round defensive end Keyron Crawford is on IR, and defensive tackle Brandon Cleveland is on the practice squad. Another Las Vegas Raiders' rookie was unavailable for Week 5 against the New England Patriots when guard Trey Zuhn (knee) was declared out on the final injury report for the week.
Then the inactives list came out before that sobering loss, and fifth-round safety Dalton Johnson was a healthy scratch for the fourth time in five games. Undrafted rookie running back Roman Hemby was elevated from the practice squad as a contingency option if Ashton Jeanty was unable to go, but he was ultimately inactive when Jeanty was deemed able to play.
As for the rookies who did play, here is a weekly report card for Raiders' 2026 draft class in Week 5. Of course, we will update their GPAs to date, which now carry a meaningful sample size of five weeks.
Las Vegas Raiders rookie report card after Week 5 loss to Patriots
Fernando Mendoza
Grade: B+
A bright spot from the 45-17 loss to the New England was Mendoza making his NFL regular season debut. The final offensive drive of the game gave him 10 snaps of action, and he looked fairly good on his way to going 6-for-8 for 48 yards along with one rush for three yards.
On an otherwise ugly day all the way around for the Silver and Black, Mendoza offered a nice glimmer of hope.
Season GPA: 3.33
Treydan Stukes
Grade: D+
It obviously wasn't a good day for anyone on the Raiders' defense, and Stukes was not immune as he played all 75 snaps. He allowed two completions on three passes where he was the nearest defender in coverage, highlighted by a mishap that left Demario Douglas wide open for a touchdown, and Pro Football Focus credited him with one missed tackle.
In his previous three games (he missed Week 3) Stukes had been pretty darn good. This should just go down as a bad day gainst the Patriots, as it was for everyone on defensive coordinator Rob Leonard's unit.
Season GPA: 2.8
Keyron Crawford
N/A- On season-ending IR
Trey Zuhn III
N/A-DNP
Season GPA: 2.48
Jermod McCoy
Grade: C
McCoy played a total of 25 snaps against the Patriots, 12 on defense and 13 on special teams. On four coverage snaps, he allowed nothing and he had one total tackle overall.
An unremarkable peformance for McCoy, but on a rough day for the defense, not being noticeable lands as a good thing.
Season GPA: 1.83
Mike Washington Jr.
Grade: C
With Ashton Jeanty clearly limited by foot and ankle issues, Washington inexplicably played just five offensive snaps and had one carry (for five yards) against New England. Head coach Klint Kubiak acknowledged playing from behind played a big role in that lack of activity, as Dylan Laube was leaned on as the passing down back to spell Jeanty.
Washington simply wasn't on the field enough in Week 5 to do anything noticeable, good or bad. The five-yard run, which tied for the Raiders' longest run, gets him a C for the day.
Season GPA: 2.38
Dalton Johnson
N/A-DNP
Season GPA: 1.3
Zeke Masses
Grade: F
Masses had his lowest defensive snap total since Week 1, and it was deserved. He was the offending cornerback on Drake Maye's 34-yard touchdown to Patriots' wide receiver Kyle Williams, and he also got beat for a 16-yard gain by Romeo Doubs.
Since #Raiders rookie CB Hezekiah Masses was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week after his first start vs. Chargers, the growing pains have kicked in.
— Ryan McFadden (@ryanmcfadden_) October 12, 2026
In the last three games, Masses has allowed nine catches for 155 yards, two touchdowns, a passer rating of 106.9 and a 60%…
Masses committed penalties on back-to-back plays on the first drive of the third quarter, helping New England truly put the game out of reach with a touchdown.
As was the case for the entire Raiders defense. as the unit allowed over 40 points and more than 500 yards of offense, Masses had a rough day. Since winning AFC Defensive Player of the Week in Week 2, it has been a struggle.
Season GPA: 2.66
Malik Benson
Grade: C
Largely due to the game situation, Benson played a season-high 16 offensive snaps against the Patriots. Three of his four targets were the Raiders' final three offensive plays in the game, and he corraled one of those looks from Mendoza for a six-yard gain.
Regardless of Jalen Nailor's health as he moves through concussion protocol, it's worth wondering if Benson might start to see a little bit of a bigger role in the Raiders' wide receiver rotation. After a couple rough plays in Week 4, he was notably taken off punt return duty against New England.
Benson has had a non-descript start to his rookie season, and his season GPA through five weeks reflects that.
Season GPA: 1.88
Brandon Cleveland
N/A-on practice squad
Overall takeaways: a week after getting a stern test against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Raiders' rookie class (those who played anyway) got more education against the defending AFC champions on the road. We knew there'd be days like these this season as young players got experience, and more are coming as a tough stretch of schedule continues to be navigated.
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