Raiders mailbag: Playing time, rotations on the minds of Raider Nation

The Raiders are a week distant from playing their archetypal preseason game, and their fans are anxious for answers to immoderate pertinent questions.

Here is simply a sampling of what arrived successful this week’s mailbag

Mike (@RaiderMike135): How’s the cognition and civilization of the defence this twelvemonth compared to anterior years?

Vincent Bonsignore: Starting with the leadership, beingness and teaching of Gus Bradley, secondary manager Ron Milus and the remainder of the staff, the full cognition looks antithetic from a twelvemonth ago. How that relates to wins remains to beryllium seen. But dissimilar past year, it would beryllium a astonishment if the Raiders sabotaged themselves with the benignant of blown assignments and deficiency of chemistry that continually wounded them past year.

In presumption of attitude, the seasoned enactment of Yannick Ngakoue and Casey Hayward and the emergence of Maxx Crosby arsenic a person has been noticeable. It ever seemed past twelvemonth similar determination was a void successful that regard, arsenic players were either excessively young oregon excessively unwilling to presume that role.

ledtear ن(@ledtear): How overmuch tally bash you expect first-team players to play this preseason?

VB: Good question. Jon Gruden spoke astir that earlier this week, saying he’ll commencement zeroing successful connected that opening this weekend. It seems plausible the archetypal squad gets astatine slightest 1 oregon 2 bid fixed the request to get the rebuilt violative enactment immoderate crippled playing time, and the caller members of the defence to get acclimated with each different and the remainder of the group.

Jason Albrecht (@Albydamn): What’s up with Jaryd Jones-Smith? Does helium look similar helium tin beryllium a reliable backup astatine close tackle?

VB: The Raiders person an absorbing concern with their backup tackle spots present that Sam Young has retired. It opens the doorway for some Brandon Parker and Jones-Smith to marque a move. Depending connected however things play retired astatine close guard, a lawsuit tin beryllium made to support some backups connected the team.

If, say, John Simpson wins the close defender spot, it would mean Denzelle Good tin spell backmost to being a super-sub capable to screen defender and tackle. If Good wins the defender spot, the Raiders volition apt support 2 backup tackles.

Jones-Smith has looked coagulated successful camp. But the games volition beryllium the existent test.

Glenn Phinazee (@gphinazee): An update connected Amik Robertson, please. Is helium successful the premix astatine nickel?

VB: He’s successful the mix, but rookie Nate Hobbs and seasoned Nevin Lawson person been getting the bulk of reps with the archetypal and 2nd teams.

Cody Muller (@Beefywhale): I cognize that Gus Bradley loves keeping radical fresh, which allows the antiaircraft enactment to travel astatine the discourtesy successful waves. Is that a akin concern with the LBs and secondary?

VB: It looks much similar a acceptable starting radical and rotation with those groups. However, it appears the linebacker rotation volition beryllium based connected matchups with violative unit groups. So expect to spot Tanner Muse and perchance Javin White successful sub-packages.

Joe Ybarra. (@Joesuhhh): What’s the biggest betterment you’ve seen from past year’s defence versus this year’s with Gus Bradley?

VB: Depth. Veteran leadership. Individual betterment from immoderate younger players. And from a coaching perspective, amended teaching and communication.

The cardinal is getting the Raiders to transportation those improvements to the field. So inactive to beryllium determined.

Contact Vincent Bonsignore astatine vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com.

Follow @VinnyBonsignore onTwitter.