HENDERSON, Nev.—Day six of the Las Vegas Raiders’ 2025 NFL Training Camp was as competitive as any, but the intensity was the highest yet.
With the team practicing in the air-conditioned indoor, the heat went up from a perspective of players battling on all sides of the ball.
As your Las Vegas Raiders Beat Writer On SI, I will share what stood out to me. Please note that I will be commenting on any specific information that could harm the Raiders strategically, should their opponents process it.
For that reason, I will, in some cases, speak very generally.
We were tipped off before practice that with Wednesday being an off day, today was going to be very physical, and it lived up to the hype.
· Pete Carroll loves his feisty approach to the game.
· Jack Bech is having an excellent camp.
· It is unfair to Bech that he isn’t getting more praise, but that isn’t his fault.
· Dont’e Thornton has stolen the spotlight from the young wide receivers.
· Bachman, as I mentioned above, is doing things to get noticed every day, but Thornton is making big plays and making it look effortless.
· The Raiders’ brain trust is thrilled with Thornton, and frankly, elated with the WR room.
· If you were to watch practice with no one wearing jersey numbers, you would have no clue that Ashton Jeanty is a rookie.
· He should be swimming with all of the new plays Chip Kelly is installing, and he isn’t.
· Jeanty is in command of the playbook, and occasionally he will make an adjustment, but he never repeats mistakes.
· Yes, he is a physical specimen, but the young man has an enormous football IQ, and it shows every day.
· On a franchise that is known for some of the greatest RBs in NFL history, he certainly is showing the early indications of greatness.
· Simply put, Ashton Jeanty is special.
· I have never, and I mean never, seen a tight end catch the football and get up the field as fast as Brock Bowers.
· In fairness, I can only think of two players as fast as him, and that is Jerry Rice and Barry Sanders.
· I watched him today go up and catch a ball, and while he was still in the air, he twisted his body upfield, so when his feet hit the turf, he could accelerate.
· That is some next level type athleticism, and he is an elite player.
· As usual, Bowers makes it look easy.
· The Las Vegas Raders tight end room is so deep. They have four legitimate guys in Brock Bowers, Michael Mayer, and Ian Thomas. Thomas is the real deal and doesn’t get enough praise.
· Dylan Laube had another nice practice. For 2025, I think his future will be the practice squad, but again, today he showed off the Jets while running for a touchdown and his helmet getting ripped off his head.
· Jordan Meredith continues to show off versatility.
· He played so well last year that he didn’t get the opportunity to show off his versatility.
· This year, with a deep and talented OL room, he has the chance, and he is making the most of it.
· Some are asking me if Meredith getting reps as the C1 is a statement of Jackson Powers-Johnson’s struggles, and the answer is a resounding no.
· Meredith’s play is because of him. JPJJ is who we know he is.
· JPJ is playing well and is a physical beast.
· Raheem Mostert was out as his wife is having a baby, but the RB room didn’t miss a beat.
· Mostert has been very impressive, but Zamir White and Sincere McCormick looked great today.
· The battle between Zamir and Sincere is real, and there is a ton of camp left, and three pre-season games, but those two young men are matching each other for intensity and effort.
· On a team defined by competition and consistency, those two are the role models, but not the only ones.
· Geno Smith’s stacking of good practices continued today. He only had two bad plays today, while taking the vast majority of plays.
· His command of the offense has been a little shocking.
· Let me explain that. I have and had enormous expectations for him. But with the way Chip Kelly runs his offense and instills concepts every day, he has complete command of the offense and looks like he is the one drawing up the plays.
· His leadership, demeanor, and knowledge of the playbook are incredibly impressive.
· Aidan O’Connell again had a good day.
· He showed off his zip and quick release, but then followed up his best pass of the day with a big miss.
· He is looking the best that he has looked his entire time here.
· If he finds consistently, which takes time (look at Geno Smith) he has the skill set to be a very good QB1 in this league.
· The single biggest issue facing AOC is simply consistency.
· Rookie Cam Miller flashes, but he is a rookie from the FCS on a very talented NFL team. It shows.
The Defense:
· Maxx Crosby is a freak of nature. The best players on the team and the best defender in the NFL once again showed up and showed off.
· Devin White had an enormous day. He has had a fantastic camp, and today he picked off Geno Smith deep down the field.
· White, as he has every day, made multiple plays, and even more impressive is his communication.
· Another player that has unfairly not gotten the praise he has earned is Elandon Roberts.
· Since the moment he got here for OTAs, he has shown.
· I like Elandon, the man, and his game is so impressive. But, the little things that don’t show up on the stat sheet make a great MIKE.
· I saw four plays today made by other players, where he communicated to them pre-snap, and if this were hockey, he would have gotten an assist.
· The defense won the day, and if this had been a real game, Roberts would have gotten a game ball.
· Jamal Adams is having a great camp, seems like I write that every day, but think about this.
· Coming into camp, it appeared on paper that the linebacker position was going to be the most significant question mark other than cornerback.
· Now, LB could be one of the deepest. Adams is playing spectacular, yes spectacular, and still isn’t carving out a starting role.
· That is no shame on him, but immense praise of Elandon Roberts and Devin White.
· All three of those men are terrific football players and people.
· I have spent a lot of time talking about Charles Snowden, and that trend continues.
· His quick twitch was noticeable on several occasions.
· His run game still has to improve, but his get off the line of scrimmage is impressive, and he has a real shot at making the Raiders look very good for believing in him.
· I saw something today from Maxx Crosby that caught my attention.
· WR Justin Shorter and CB Jakorian Bennett got into a little skirmish. Maxx ran across the field to talk to Shorter.
· Crosby holds this team in the palm of his hand. They revere him, and they respect him, and it showed in how that skirmish was handled.
· Do yourself a favor. Watch our video with Devin White. Grab some Kleenex, and you can thank me later. You can watch that below:
· Adam Butler’s role has grown exponentially this offseason as his leadership is unquestioned.
· Not only is he playing great, but he, like Crosby, is leading at a maximum level.
The Intangibles:
· The offense had one penalty today, the defense had one, and there was none on special teams. It was a disciplined, competitive battle.
· As mentioned, today was the most physical practice.
· What was fascinating was that Pete Carroll called the situation, for example, 3rd and eight at the offense’s 43-yard line.
· OC Chip Kelly and DC Patrick Graham had no scripts; they called their plays.
· The coaches were competing as the players were.
· That was a thing of football beauty, watching those two experienced coaches go at each other.
· Both sides of the Raiders football are going to be better in 2025.
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