Biggest Surprises From Raiders' Final Roster Cuts

Training camp and the preseason gave Kubiak and his staff all the information they needed to make roster decisions they were comfortable with ahead of the 2026 regular season. The Raiders cut their roster in half ahead of Sunday's deadline and used Monday to solidify their practice squad.

Together, Sunday and Monday brought the most clarity about the 2026 Raiders since Kubiak arrived. With the initial 53-man roster and the practice squad set, Las Vegas can begin focusing fully on its Week 1 matchup against the Miami Dolphins in two weeks, as a solid start to the season is critical.

An offseason of change has led the Raiders to this moment. After spending weeks implementing those changes, Las Vegas' coaching staff had more than enough information to make the necessary roster moves on Sunday and Monday.

Based on the players' respective performances in training camp and their three preseason games, most of the roster-related decisions Kubiak's staff faced seemed to have been answered over the past few months. Still, the roster decisions Las Vegas made ahead of Week 1 spoke volumes.

Biggest Surprise:

None of the players that the Raiders cut from their 90-man roster were a surprise in themselves. However, the surprise was that the Raiders filled their practice squad entirely with players from their 90-man roster. This was a small early win for Kubiak's Raiders.

Las Vegas was able to add the likes of cornerback Greedy Vance and linebacker Cameron McGrone to their practice squad. They were also able to add Cian Slone and Jahfari Harvey as solid options at defensive end. Keeping Roman Hemby and Albert Okwuegbunam will help as well.

If there were any surprises regarding the players the Raiders moved on from, the fact that they were able to fill their practice squad with those same players should make those moves less surprising. Las Vegas' coaching staff clearly knows this roster inside and out.

The Raiders' staff was able to aggressively trim their roster down because of how they conducted camp and the preseason. Although Las Vegas has a long way to go, Kubiak's staff began setting a new standard on the field, with their roster moves reinforcing a new direction for the team.

Kubiak recently explained his approach to setting the tone this offseason. Things have been far from perfect, as Las Vegas is in the early stages of its rebuild under Kubiak. Still, the first-year head coach has emphasized the importance of doing things the right way.

“I think just from coaching, you know that any one little mistake on any given play can affect the outcome of a game. The edges are so short and the mistakes get magnified so much. So, if you don't treat the little mistakes in practice and in walkthroughs like it's a live rep in the AFC Championship game, then you're selling the players short,” Kubiak said following the team's final preseason game.

“So, I think that's our coaching staff's mindset is to never walk past a mistake and to be as detailed as we can be, knowing how important it is that we get things fixed. So, that's just our job as coaches to never be lackadaisical, even in a walkthrough." 

There were not many surprises for the Raiders' roster, or elsewhere this summer. After years that brought surprises at every turn, the lack of surprises is a positive in this instance. The Raiders are right where they need to be heading into the start of the regular season.