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Raiders' overlooked offensive weapon got a lot of attention at mandatory minicamp, and no one is talking about it

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By Justin Churchill | Last updated Jun 23, 2025 10:09 PM ET

The Las Vegas Raiders have much more weapons than they did last year, when they had one of the worst offenses in the league, if not the worst. So, the expectations are that this offense will be better than that one. But really, is that hard to do?

This offense has some weapons -- Brock Bowers, Jakobi Meyers, Dont'e Thornton Jr., Jack Bech, Ashton Jeanty, and some others. But there is one guy on this team who isn't getting the love that he should be. And, maybe that's because he has been on the team the last two years and hasn't done much of anything, but that's more so a product of him being on a bad offense with a bad quarterback, not that he's a bad player.

Michael Mayer has been getting a ton of attention at mandatory minicamp this offseason -- although it's been over for a week or so now. But he's not a guy that anyone is really talking about. And, they should be, because he was drafted in the second round for a reason -- the dude can ball, and he's been showing that this offseason.

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"I thought Mike [Michael Mayer] had a great off-season with us," head coach Pete Carroll told reporters at mandatory minicamp. "We started out going heart to heart, and he understood what we're all about, and he embraced it and took it as well as anybody could take the challenge of bringing it day in and day out.

"He had a great camp, and he was doing well before Brock [Bowers] got here, and the two of them just went head to head just trying to make a play here and there and going back and forth. And they were just great contributors. It's a terrific position group for us. Ian Thomas is coming in really, really liven it up as well. So, we have a very good position group right there and excited about what they're going to do, but I thought Michael had a great camp.”

Chip Kelly's offense will feature a bit of 12 personnel or two tight end sets, and they need that kind of versatility in their offense if they want to be successful. Teams will try to stop and shut down Brock Bowers, so other guys will have to step up, especially other guys in the position room. Mayer can be that guy after a full offseason and two seasons under his belt.

And most importantly, Mayer is going to have a legitimate QB throwing him the ball in former Seattle Seahawks QB Geno Smith. If they can get him at the level that he should be going into his third season, he could be a very good player for the Raiders.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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