Silver And Black Pride
We finally have some actual football to talk about, as the Las Vegas Raiders had their first preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday night. So, we’ll be touching on that and training camp in this week’s mailbag.
Q: What’s up with Jackson Powers-Johnson having to fight for a job, any job?
A: This is one of the biggest questions I have right now, so I wish I had a more concrete answer. I get the feeling the new coaching staff isn’t completely sold on Powers-Johnson and is trying to send a message to him.
He and Maxx Crosby talked about how they didn’t get along at first last year, with the presumption being that JPJ’s work ethic wasn’t up to Crosby’s standards. However, the Pro Bowl pass rusher has since sung the center’s praises, and they have a great relationship now.
The reason I bring that up is maybe the coaching staff has some concerns about Powers-Johnson’s practice habits, but that’s just speculation. I also get the sense that they don’t trust him with the mental aspects of playing center, like setting the protection, identifying the MIKE, etc. Even when JPJ is at center, Alex Cappa or someone else typically takes those responsibilities.
Still, the Raiders’ plan with Powers-Johnson doesn’t make sense to me. In my opinion, he’s their best interior offensive lineman and is an easy choice to start. Hopefully, he takes command of the position battle soon.
A: I thought Powers-Johnson was better at center than guard last season, and he was the best center in College Football two years ago. That being said, guards make more money than centers, so financially, JPJ would be better off mastering guard. I also thought Meredith looked pretty good at guard, but he does have size limitations that profile better at the pivot.
A: No, they could have Parham and Meredith at the guard spots and JPJ at center while Alex Cappa rides the bench. More than anything, I think the coaching staff views Meredith as having potential at center to explain why he and JPJ would switch positions.
Q: Is there any truth to the recent reports that Dylan Parham is currently weighing in at 332 lbs and Thayer Munford at 354? If they are, are they carrying it well in terms of movement and strength?
A: I’m not at training camp, so I can’t say how well they are carrying the weight. But those are the numbers that are listed on the Raiders’ roster, and Parham definitely looks bigger than ever. Munford has always been a bigger dude, so it’s harder to tell with him, but I don’t think they’d have a reason to fudge the numbers.
Especially with Parham, I’d imagine Chip Kelly and the offensive coaching staff wanted the linemen to add some size and strength to help with the gap-run blocking.
Q: Is the Thayer Mumford guard experiment over?
A: I wouldn’t say it’s over because I think Munford can still fill in at...
