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Emerging Raiders Star Returns to Practice Field After Missing Entire 2024 Season

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Levi Dombro | Last updated May 30, 2025 4:29 PM ET

The Las Vegas Raiders were plagued with issues last season under head coach Antonio Pierce. Due to a combination of poor personnel choices, a lack of strong leadership and several devastating injuries, the team mustered only four wins.

Two of those major injuries came early in the season on the defensive line. Defensive tackle Christian Wilkins, who signed a $110 million deal with the Raiders last offseason, broke his foot during Week 5 and missed the rest of the 2024 campaign.

Edge rusher Malcolm Koonce was the other significant injury, as he tore his ACL just days before the season opener against the Los Angeles Chargers.

While Wilkins is still yet to make a comeback from his early-season injury, Las Vegas received good news on Thursday. The Athletic's Tashan Reed reported that Koonce was back on the practice field during Phase 3 of OTAs after missing the entire 2024 season.

"Defensive end Malcolm Koonce returned to practice Thursday," Reed wrote. "It’s an important step in his recovery process from the torn ACL that caused him to miss all of last season. He was primarily limited to individual drills during practice, but that still represents notable progress."

It may still take time for Koonce to return to a full practice load, and even longer to return to his form from late in the 2023 season. However, this is a major step in his rehabilitation process, which is exactly the kind of news that Raiders fans wanted to hear.

When healthy, Koonce is one of the most promising edge rushers in the league, as he recorded 8.0 sacks in the final nine games of the 2023 campaign. Alongside Maxx Crosby, the Silver and Black could have one of the most lethal pass-rushing attacks in the league if Koonce can continue to make progress.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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