Jun 11, 2025; Henderson, NV, USA; Las Vegas Raiders head coach Pete Carroll looks on during Las Vegas Raiders Minicamp at Intermountain Health Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images Candice Ward-Imagn Images

Underrated Raider Shined in Joint Practice Against 49ers

Originally posted on Las Vegas Raiders on SI
By Michael Canelo | Last updated Aug 16, 2025 9:00 AM ET

As the Raiders are already past the mid-point of their training camp and into preseason games, they will get ready to cut down the roster soon. The Raiders have been going to battle since the first day of camp and now they will continue to do that leading up to the start of the season. Soon, the Raiders are going to have to make the difficult decisions on what players they are going to keep and which ones they are going to cut.

They are giving all their players opportunities to show them what they can do and bring to the team. The Raiders' new regime wants to have the best roster possible from top to bottom. The Silver and Black continue that process and are getting set for the final stages of it. When the Raiders go into the new season, they want to feel like they did their best to prepare and make it a good one in 2025.

A player that is making a lot of noise this week with all the opportunities the Raiders coaching staff is giving him is Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly. Kelly had a good game in the first preseason matchup last week, and he took that momentum into this week. The coach gave him first-time reps on the defensive side of the ball, and he took advantage of it. He played well, and Kelly has put the coaching staff on notice.

Our Hondo Carpenter and Ezekiel Trezevant talked about Kelly in joint practice this week on a recent episode of the "Las Vegas Raiders Insider Podcast."

Kyu Blu Kelly

"I do not know if this guy has had a better day, and I do not think anyone had a better day than Kyu Blu Kelly," said Carpenter. "The youngster from Stanford, so impressive today. And going against the top 49ers. That is what the thing that stood out to me. Patrick Graham was like, "All right , young buck, I will give you some shots against some good ones."

"The reason he got that shot is because he has been growing through pretty much every practice. You know, he has kind of grown, you see it every time you go out there," said Trezevant. Kelly is impressive. I like his integrity."