The Raiders are in the process of making several changes on the offensive line this offseason. While that unit wasn’t bad last season, Antonio Pierce wanted to upgrade the group and that’s why we’ve seen so many changes.
One of those changes involves Thayer Munford, who is expected to be the full-time starter at right tackle. Munford has played both left and right tackle in Las Vegas, but the expectation going forward is that he’ll stay on the right side.
In a recent article by Tashan Reed of The Athletic, he wrote about Munford and James Cragg’s (offensive line coach) thoughts on the third-year player from Ohio State. Here is a snippet of what he had to say about Munford and his fit at right tackle:
Especially watching the latter part of last year, he jumped out at me a lot. He’s been a good fit over there with his athleticism. He’s untapped. He’s still learning. He’s a raw football player. He’s still developing, in my opinion. He’s getting better every practice. He’s natural on the left. … But he can go both directions. You saw it last year: He could go step in for Kolton when he needed to. He’s been a pleasant surprise over there at right.
While it’s clear that Cragg believes that Munford is a better fit at left tackle, all of the reports from the offseason have been positive in regard to his play at right tackle. Munford has been a good player whenever he’s been on the field, but the expectations will be different now that he’s a starter.
Can Munford make the full-time transition to right tackle? That remains to be seen, but the Raiders are high on him and believe that he could play either spot on a moment’s notice. That is pretty hard to find in the NFL.
