Predicting the Raiders' X-Factor of the 2025 Season

Training Camp Hints

There were a couple of notable changes during training camp, as the Raiders switched some things around after getting an idea of what they had at certain positions.

Ben Solak of ESPN recently released his list of X-factors for every team in the National Football League. He named offensive lineman Jordan Meredith as the Raiders'. This is accurate based on how things went in training camp.

"The Raiders plan to start Meredith at center. He has never made a regular-season snap at center in college or in the pros. They have 2024 second-rounder Jackson Powers-Johnson, a college center at Oregon, on the roster. But Powers-Johnson is playing right guard," Solak said.

"I don't know exactly what they're cooking. Stylistically, Powers-Johnson is a bulky and boxy lineman, whereas Meredith moves a little easier. I'm assuming offensive coordinator Chip Kelly has a vision for which body types work in which position in his running game and has sculpted his offensive line accordingly. But still, there's a guy snapping who hasn't snapped before! That's a big deal.

"If Meredith and Powers-Johnson settle into their respective roles, the Raiders can have a solid line. If there are hiccups in pass protection or snap delivery that lead to a midseason shuffling, the shifting continuity could spell problems across a unit that needs time to jell.

Following the Raiders' preseason finale against the Arizona Cardinals, Carroll acknowldged the drop off between the Raiders' starting offensive line and the reserves. There has been a glaring difference between the two in training camp and the team's three preseason games.

"Well, we're just so young on the second group. It's just going to take time. We feel like we move well. We have good movement by the young guys. They get out of their stance, and they get on people well. We're just not as accurate with our calls. We're not as clear with our technique stuff, but that takes time," Carroll said.

"And so I'm not worried about that. Athletically, we're okay, and we just need to find our consistency, and that's just going to take time. They won't play all at the same time very often. They'll spot in, and they'll have the benefit of experienced guys making calls around them and helping them play better. And so I think that the individual development is pretty good. As a group, they're still learning. That's going to take a bit."

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