The Las Vegas Raiders held their ninth practice of training camp on Monday and the first unpadded practice in over a week. On Saturday, the Raiders will take the field for the first time in the 2024 season as they square off against the Minnesota Vikings in Minneapolis.
Monday's practice was all over the place, as we got an uninspiring update on the quarterback competition, saw a crucial depth piece return, and a rookie get increased opportunities with the starters.
We go over that and more as we bring you the biggest takeaways from practice based on beat writers' observations.
Raiders training camp takeaways
O'Connell edges out Minshew
The highly anticipated quarterback battle between Aidan O'Connell and Gardner Minshew has completely flopped, as neither player has stacked good practices and instilled much confidence.
After an impressive showing during Saturday's practice, Minshew came back to Earth on Monday.
Vic Tafur of the Athletic called the 28-year-old's performance "erratic," as he failed to sustain drives and consistently complete passes. Though he did impress with his legs, scrambling for first downs and scoring a touchdown on a quarterback sneak, it was a disappointing day overall for the veteran out of Washington State.
Minshew been erratic so far today. Step back from Saturday’s scrimmage.
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) August 5, 2024
Both passes from AOC … Minshew had a better second half of practice and scrambled for at least 3 first downs. Practice ends with QB sneak TD.
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) August 5, 2024
O'Connell had a solid practice on Monday but has shown little improvement in his second training camp.
According to Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the 25-year-old connected with Kristian Wilkerson and Tre Tucker for 20-yard gains but struggled with accuracy during team drills. O'Connell did throw the lone touchdown pass of the day to undrafted free agent Ramel Keyton.
The Raiders' quarterbacks have been uninspiring in camp thus far, and with the preseason opener on the horizon, time is ticking for O'Connell and Minshew to figure it out.
Jakorian Bennett shines
The second-year cornerback out of Maryland had a tumultuous rookie campaign but has taken strides in his second training camp.
According to Levi Damien of Raiders Wire, the 23-year-old made a couple of nice plays during team drills, including a few pass deflections on pass to Brock Bowers. and a near interception of Aidan O'Connell.
The Raiders are hoping the former fourth-round pick takes a huge leap in his sophomore season, and so far it looks like that might happen.
DJ Glaze gets first-team reps again
The third-round pick continues to be the shock of training camp, as Glaze received another opportunity with first-team reps during Monday's practice.
According to Tashan Reed of the Athletic, Glaze served as the starting right tackle during the team's final 11-on-11 drill and is in the mix for the starting role. The 22-year-old is performing above expectations in his first training camp and is stacking solid practices.
DJ Glaze got some more snaps with the starters at RT for the #Raiders today. He's made significant strides in terms of carving out a larger role.
— Tashan Reed (@tashanreed) August 5, 2024
Even if he doesn't win the starting job, Glaze could earn the right to be the first player off the bench at right tackle.
Jack Jones shows off his foot
The NFL's new kickoff is causing teams to get creative with their lineups on special teams. According to Vic Tafur of the Athletic, cornerback Jack Jones showed off his foot at practice and is excelling on the kickoff team.
Jack Jones showing off the foot again. The benefit of having him do kickoffs is he gets a running start on making the tackle.
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) August 5, 2024
Jalen Guyton returns
The former Charger finally came off the PUP list on Monday and practiced with the team for the first time in training camp. Guyton's return will prove pivotal, as Las Vegas lacks depth at the receiver position, especially after Michael Gallup retired.
WR Jalen Guyton making his camp debut.
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) August 5, 2024
Jeff Foreman carted off
UDFA wide receiver Jeff Foreman went down with a knee injury during practice. The 24-year-old was carted off the field after getting his legs tangled up in the end zone trying to make a catch.
Per #Raiders spox: knee injury, being evaluated.
— Paul Gutierrez (@PGutierrezESPN) August 5, 2024
Ramel Keyton continues to impress
UDFA Ramel Keyton continues to showcase his big-play ability at practice, as he was on the receiving end of an O'Connell deep-ball touchdown during team drills.
According to Levi Edwards of Raiders.com, Antonio Pierce told wide receivers coach Edgar Bennett to give Keyton some reps with the second-team offense. Keyton subsequently responded.
Antonio Pierce mentioned earlier today he told receivers coach Edgar Bennett to give UDFA Ramel Keyton some more reps with the second-team.
— Levi Edwards (@theleviedwards) August 5, 2024
The former Tennessee Volunteer just caught a deep ball on a post from Aidan O’Connell for a touchdown.#Raiders
The former Tennessee standout has a path to make the 53-man roster and earn a role if he continues to stack great practices and stands out in the preseason.
