We didn't hear much about Las Vegas Raiders 2024 third-round pick and offensive tackle DJ Glaze during the offseason program and in the first few days of training camp, but he appears to be coming on strong as camp progresses.
In what was perhaps his best day of training camp thus far, Glaze saw some first-team reps on Tuesday after projected starting right tackle Thayer Munford Jr. exited practice briefly with a hand injury.
Lined up against star pass-rusher Maxx Crosby and the Raiders' talented defensive front, Glaze was able to hold his own and "opened some important eyes within the organization," according to Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
One of the pairs of eyes he has opened is head coach Antonio Pierce's, who heaped praise on the Maryland product before practice on Friday.
"He's shown up in a big way," Pierce said, per Vic Tafur of The Athletic. "Didn't blink, didn't flinch (on Tuesday). Munford went down and he popped in there and, you know, first rep against Maxx, OK, that's always going to be tough. But as the practice went on, you just saw a guy growing.
"But forget Tuesday — since he's gotten here, he's just been steady Eddie. He's been consistent in everything he's done. His approach to the game; he's taking it like a pro, he's learning from some of those veterans that we have in front of him. He doesn't say a lot, but he's out here working each and every day, and he puts his best foot forward each and every day. You see growth and improvement. What does that translate onto the field? We'll still find out, but I think you have to be excited about where he's going and just his approach."
Pierce on rookie DJ Glaze stepping up: pic.twitter.com/71eMcYj2uj
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) August 2, 2024
Raiders general manager Tom Telesco received plenty of flak for taking Glaze in the third round, as the selection was viewed as a reach by many.
There's still a long way to go before we know just how right or wrong Telesco was, but it appears Glaze is off to a good start in his first training camp. Barring injury he remains a long shot to be the starter at right tackle come Week 1, but at least he's moving in the right direction.
