Pro Football Rumors
The Raiders have undergone major changes since finishing the 2025 season with the worst record in the NFL and securing the No. 1 pick in the draft. A new head coach and coaching staff and a new starting quarterback headline the updates, but the team’s efforts in recent years to improve the offensive line have not gone unnoticed. A battle for the starting left guard spot, in particular, could be worth watching as the team attempts to put a bow onto a finished project.
After he missed all but four games in 2025, Las Vegas will be excited to see Kolton Miller return at left tackle next season, and former second-round pick DJ Glaze should be set to start at right tackle for the third straight year. The Raiders made one of their biggest moves of the offseason when they coaxed Tyler Linderbaum out of Baltimore with a record-setting contract for an NFL center. Right guard Jackson Powers-Johnson also ended last year on injured reserve after only making seven starts, but its expected that he, too, will return to a starting spot next to Glaze for the third year in a row.
With Dylan Parham departing for New York in free agency, that leaves one more starting spot up for grabs. According to ESPN’s Ryan McFadden, the likeliest scenario sees free agent addition Spencer Burford slotting in at left guard on the first-team offense, but youngsters Caleb Rogers and Trey Zuhn III should push him for the job as the offseason continues.
Burford was a fourth-round selection out of UTSA for San Francisco in 2022. As a rookie, he started 16 games for the 49ers at right guard. He started his sophomore campaign starting at right guard, as well, but he found himself coming off the bench late in the season into the postseason as Jon Feliciano took over the starting role until getting injured in the Super Bowl. The addition of Dominick Puni in 2024 pushed Burford back to the bench, but he found starting time again last year after starter Ben Bartch suffered an injury that would end up keeping him out for most of the season.
Burford has not been stellar as a starter so far in his NFL career, but his starting experience was enough for the Raiders to bring him in on a one-year, $3.26MM deal in free agency. Essentially, Burford’s experience puts him in the driver seat for now, but Rogers and Zuhn will their opportunities to push him from the spot. Rogers closed out the season for Las Vegas last year at right guard after Powers-Johnson went down. He started off strong in his first few starts but ended the season with so difficult performances. The team hopes to see the former third-round pick out of Texas Tech develop into an eventual starter, and McFadden anticipates serious competition from Rogers as the offseason continues.
Another third-round pick out of Texas, Zuhn was selected by Vegas after four years as the starting left tackle...
