Raiders fullback spot is Connor Heyward’s to lose, but who backs him up?

At last, a true fullback has returned to the Las Vegas Raiders’ lineup.

After two seasons without one on the roster, head coach Klint Kubiak and general manager John Spytek wasted little time by landing one in free agency: Former Pittsburg Steeler Connor Heyward. By bringing back a position group that’s going extinct in the NFL — roughly 11 to 15 teams even have a true fullback on the roster nowadays — the Silver & Black bring are set to return to traditionalist roots in Heyward.

Not having one in 2024 and 2025 altered the run game the respective seasons. And to showcase Kubiak wasn’t merely using hackneyed “coach speak” when mentioning the importance of a fullback to his offense, Heyward — a tight end/fullback hybrid during his stint with the Steelers — was announced by the Raiders as a fullback and given the No. 34, normally reserved for backs in the offensive backfield.

The primary reasons why a fullback is integral to Kubiak’s offense include:

• Outside zone pathfinder: Uniform horizontal movement from the offensive line is at the forefront, but behind that group is a physical fullback that lead blocks, engages defenders, and clears the way for the running back to do damage.
• Deception and mismatches: With a penchant to run a variety of plays from similar looking formations, Kubiak loves the cat and mouse game between himself and the defensive play caller on the other sideline or in the booth. With a fullback in the backfield and/or using pre-snap motion, the ability to hone in on tendencies is tough as it could be either a run or pass.
• Play Action: With an effective run game, defenses are forced to respond and commit more resources to stymie the ground game. A fullback in the backfield makes it appear another run is coming and a heavy box is required to combat it. Only for tight ends, wide receivers, running backs and even the fullback running a pattern for receptions.

At 6-feet and 230 pounds, the 27-year-old Heyward is built for both lead blocking and pass catching duties. The position versatility he showcased in his four years in Pittsburgh aligns with what Kubiak intends to do in Las Vegas. Hence why it’s a spot that’s Heyward’s to lose.

But who is the backup fullback?

As our Tristen Kuhn noted above, there’s another versatile option already on the roster in undrafted free agent Patrick Gurd.

At 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds, the 24-year-old is listed as a tight end but served as a blocking fullback during his six-year collegiate career (four at Ohio State (2020-24) and one final season at Cincinnati in 2025). He’s a lot taller and bulkier than Heyward and both the Buckeyes and Bearcats deployed him as the lead blocker in front of the running back in short-yardage and heavy formations.

How to surmise that blocking was Gurd’s collegiate calling card? He caught five passes for 61 yards in the 38 career games he played — three...