Shortly the Raiders and Vikings will kick off for their preseason matchup. From the sounds of it, we won’t see much in the way of sure starters again, which is fine, because what we want to see are guys trying to prove they belong. Here are five of those players to keep an eye on today.
T Thayer Munford
The rookie seventh round pick has been the talk of camp of late. Mainly because, with Brandon Parker injured, Munford is getting increased snaps. He is also drawing raves from his teammates for the improvement he’s showed in his short time with the team.
I would expect Munford to get a large dose of snaps at right tackle as the team both looks to see what they have in the former Buckeye, but tries to find a solution at the right tackle spot.
RB Ameer Abdullah
James White retired this week. Why is that applicable? Well, because White was the outlet for Josh McDaniels’s offense out of the backfield for the past eight years and put up some impressive numbers in the process. Some think Abdullah can play that role for McDaniels in Las Vegas.
Abdullah had two catches for 23 yards in the Hall of Fame game, so keep an eye on him in this one as well.
WR Mack Hollins
For all the hype Hollins was garnering in camp leading up to the Hall of Fame game, he had just one catch for a loss in the game. That could just be McDaniels hiding his intentions for Hollins, but be on the look out to see if Hollins will peel back the curtain a little bit and show up today against the Vikings.
LB Darien Butler
Butler led the Raiders in tackles in the Hall of Fame game. All eyes should be on him again in this one with Denzel Perryman, Divine Deablo, and Kenny Young not expected to play. If he has a repeat performance, the undrafted rookie could make a strong push to make this roster.
CB Amik Robertson
There has been expectations of Robertson in each of his first two seasons that he never lived up to. Once again, there is talk that he could be pushing for playing time at outside cornerback. And with Trayvon Mullen still on PUP and Rock Ya-Sin, Anthony Averett not expected to play, Robertson should get his first shot to show what he brings to the tabkle. He didn’t play in the Hall of Fame game.
