While the Las Vegas Raiders fell to 0-1-1 in the preseason with Saturday afternoon’s loss to the San Francisco 49ers, the more important takeaways from the game are centered around getting the team ready for the regular season. That includes fighting for positioning on the depth chart and 53-man roster spots.
With that in mind, let’s dive into this week’s winners and losers.
WINNER: Ashton Jeanty
While Jeanty is in no danger of falling on the depth chart and certainly isn’t on the roster bubble, he,
unjustly, took some heat for recording negative one yard on three carries during his NFL debut in Seattle.
But the No. 6 overall pick put an end to all of the jokes by logging seven carries for 33 yards (4.7 ypc) and a touchdown, while running over a couple of defenders in the process. That was an encouraging sign from the rookie as he made his presence felt heading into the regular season.
LOSER: Eric Stokes
Based on the reports from training camp, Stokes appears to be the defense’s only unquestioned starting cornerback since he’s been running with the ones throughout the summer. However, he didn’t look like on Saturday. The veteran was targeted three times and allowed three completions for 41 yards on just 11 snaps in coverage, per Pro Football Focus.
WINNER: JJ Pegues
Pegues might be working his way up the depth chart at defensive tackle. He had a handful of quality reps as a run defender against the Seahawks and managed to record four pressures as a pass-rusher versus the 49ers, tied for the second-most among interior defenders, per PFF. Additionally, the Ole Miss product continued to show potential against the run to help finish as the Raiders’ second-highest graded defender (78.4) on Saturday.
LOSER: Greedy Vance Jr.
Vance has only participated in 22 defensive snaps in both preseason contests combined and has struggled to make a positive impact so far. He had a bad missed tackle that turned what should have been a short gain into a near first down last week, and drew a pass interference penalty on one of his five coverage snaps this past weekend.
For a guy who’s on the roster bubble, Vance isn’t taking advantage of his opportunities and is standing out in the wrong direction.
WINNER: Tyree Wilson
This is widely considered the make-or-break year for Wilson, and he had an encouraging performance against San Francisco. While he didn’t show up on the stat sheet much, the 2023 first-round pick had a couple of nice reps setting the edge as a run defender and managed to record a pressure with an impressive bull rush, earning a 74.6 mark from PFF.
Considering Wilson is likely going to serve as a defensive end on run downs and slide inside in passing situations moving forward, Saturday’s outing was good to see and a step in the right direction.
LOSER: Antonio Mafi
To be fair, Mafi is likely a long shot to make the 53-man roster anyway. However, he might have sealed his fate versus the 49ers, giving up a couple of pressures in pass protection, including a sack. That’s on top of earning an ugly 0.7 PFF pass blocking grade the week before.
WINNER: Chris Smith II
Especially with Lonnie Johnson Jr. sidelined with a significant injury and Thomas Harper currently dinged up, the Raiders are looking for help at safety right now. Smith stepped up and delivered on Saturday, leading Las Vegas with seven solo tackles. Among those was a great open-field tackle during a Cover 0 call near the goal line to get a stop on third down.
