Three Raiders entering prove-it years in 2025

This season is shaping up to be a crucial one for the Las Vegas Raiders.

With new head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Spytek leading the way, the Raiders have expectations of progress coming off of a miserable 4-13 campaign a year ago. New additions such as quarterback Geno Smith and rookie running back Ashton Jeanty will help in the same way that tight end Brock Bowers did last season. The Raiders might not be entering the season with the most realistic of Super Bowl hopes, but a jump similar to the Houston Texans and Washington Commanders in recent years is far from out of the question.

If the Raiders want to realize those ambitions, however, they will need these three players to step up in a major way.

Jackson Powers-Johnson

It was a tale of two seasons for Powers-Johnson, who was the Raiders’ second-round pick in 2024.

After the confusing decision to place the 2023 Rimington Trophy winner for best center at guard, Powers-Johnston struggled to get acclimated early on in his NFL career. However, things turned around quickly once he got back to the center position at Week 9. While some rookie mistakes did occur (the botched snap in the Black Friday game against the Kansas City Chiefs, in particular), Powers-Johnson went from Pro Football Focus grades under 60.0 in run and pass-blocking as a guard to above 74 as a center.

Despite the strong showing, however, Spytek did throw Powers-Johnson’s name into the mix for competitions on the interior offensive line. He is the favorite to retain the starting center role, but the fact that he has yet to truly cement the spot is a sign that the new regime wants to see more. Powers-Johnson has reportedly worked with superstar pass rusher Maxx Crosby during the offseason, so hopefully that means a new and improved player coming into his sophomore season.

With left tackle Kolton Miller still on an expiring deal, Powers-Johnson has a tremendous opportunity to cement himself as the long-term linchpin of the Raiders’ offensive line.

Tre Tucker

Of all the returning starters from 2024, no Raiders will be looking over their shoulder during training camp than Tucker.

Tucker did show improvement in his second season, and it can be argued he could have had a breakout season if it were not for the deficiencies around him. However, the regime that drafted him is now completely gone, and Tucker must now prove himself to Carroll and Spytek that he fits their vision. They did not make that road easy for him, however.

Second-round pick Jack Bech projects to start immediately as a big slot receiver, immediately pushing Tucker to the outside. Tucker’s five-foot-nine frame might not be suited for that role on offense, however, and fourth-round rookie Dont’e Thornton Jr. offers similar elite speed in a much larger frame (six-foot-five). Thornton is very much a raw athletic specimen at this point of his development, but Carroll has shown the ability to maximize athletically-gifted projects early on (Seattle Seahawks cornerback Riq Woolen can attest to that).

Any improvement from Thornton during training camp will result in a shorter leash for Tucker, so the third-year receiver must produce quickly.

Jakorian Bennett

The only major addition the Raiders made at cornerback was third-round pick Darien Porter and free agent Eric Stokes, so Bennett has some breathing room to work with.

However, a defining factor in Bennett’s career so far has been injuries. In two seasons, Bennett has already been out of action for ten games. He has shown to be a solid cornerback when healthy, but a clean bill of health is now more important than ever.

With Jack Jones and Nate Hobbs gone, Bennett is the only remaining starter from last season’s cornerback room. Stokes was brought in as a reclamation project, Porter is an exciting-but-raw prospect, and the cornerback room tails off significantly after that. There were rumors suggesting the Raiders would target Miami Dolphins cornerback Jalen Ramsey, and Bennett either getting hurt or struggling to get acclimated to Carroll’s gameplan could only add to the idea of a new addition.

2025 will be crucial for Bennett to showcase the promise that the Raiders saw when they drafted him in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft.