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HENDERSON, Nev.—The Las Vegas Raiders' 2025 NFL Training Camp has offered its fair share of storylines after eight practices.

I would like to offer you some bold observations from this camp so far, and several specifically from today's recently concluded eighth practice.

From that insider’s perspective, here are my bold observations:.

This camp is predicated on the three C’s: Compete, Consistency, Creativity.

Compete

  1. Interior Offensive Line

I am not God, and I certainly don’t have access to the offensive mind of OC Chip Kelly, but I find it hard to imagine that Jackson Powers-Johnson is not one of the top-three IOL in this team. 

With that said, the battle between JPJ Alex Cappa, and Jordan Meredith is fun to watch. 

They are all competing at such a high level, and then turning around and helping one another. 

That is what Pete Carroll craves.  The responsibility to compete for the best role you can win, while at the same time prioritizing being a good teammate.  The Raiders are better having those three men, and they are better for this position battle.

2.  Wide Receiver

There is no pretending that Jakobi Meyers isn’t WR1.

To me, it is settled that Tre Tucker and Dont’e Thornton round out the starting three.  But Jack Bech is having an impressive camp, as is Alex Bachman, and while there is a long way to go until the end of camp, I think those are the five WRs locked in. 

Does someone emerge to convince the team to take a sixth?  Competition will tell the story.

3.   Tight End Battles

There is no speculation that Brock Bowers is TE1; he is the best on the team and in the NFL. 

There is also no doubt that Michael Mayer is TE2. 

It would appear TE3 is also settled with Ian Thomas. 

But, and this is a big but, the Raiders keep four TEs, and that would be unprecedented; there is a big battle with Carter Runyon and Qadir Ismail. 

I have reported that while unprecedented, there is consideration for the team to carry four.

4.  Running Back

We know that Ashton Jeanty is RB1, and RB2 is Raheem Mostert (Who was back at practice after his wife had a baby), but the battle for RB3 is intense. 

I thought Zamir White had inched ahead, and after today, I believe Sincere McCormick may have taken the spot. 

Regardless, I believe both men make the 53-man roster, but watching who ends up as RB3 is a battle worth watching.

Consistency

1.  The Second String Struggles  The second-string offense and defense had a great day yesterday, but today was not a good performance. 

They were at times sloppy and made numerous mistakes.  I understand that there is still a long way to go, but with the coaching staff craving completion, some of them missed some real opportunities today, in my opinion.

2.  Defensive Back

Jakorian Bennett is battling.  The battle isn’t close to being over. Now, in year three, the money year, he needs to demonstrate to this staff his ability to be consistent every day. 

He doesn’t have to be perfect, but right now, Decamerion Richardson, Eric Stokes, Darnay Holmes, and rookie Darien Porter have moved ahead of him for one reason: it isn’t speed, talent, or character; it is simply consistency.

Creativity

1.   Old School Raider Football Is Back

Throughout my childhood, the Silver and Balc were defined by toughness and creativity. 

You never had a clue what they were going to do next.  On offense or defense, this storied franchise was the pacesetter in the NFL for new conventional wisdom and thought. 

That is not what I have seen over my six years in the desert, until this year. 

Pete Carroll has taken the Raider Nation out of the proverbial box, and has unleashed OC Chip Kelly, STC Tom McMahon, and DC Patrick Graham to think outside the proverbial box, and to experiment and do things the way old school Raiders will remember fondly.  I can make you one promise for the 2025 team, expect the unexpected.  As I have said many times, I can’t and won’t give away schemes, but in all three phases of the game, the Silver and Black are experimenting and tinkering. 

Al Davis would be proud.

An Extra Point

New Raiders minority owner Tom Brady was watching practice today.  It was apparent when players noticed.  He still commands the respect as the greatest player of all time (GOAT), and when the players saw him, it was a big deal to many of them.

We'd appreciate it if you would follow us on X @HondoCarpenter and IG @HondoSr , and let’s talk about the Silver and Black’s training camp and these comments.

This article first appeared on Las Vegas Raiders on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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