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2 positions on Raiders defense in midst of heated training camp battles
There is a lot that is unsettled on this Raiders squad early in camp. But there are two positions in particular which are far and away the most unsettled.CornerbackThere are three starting cornerback positions to be had on this team. One of them is settled for sure. That's the right cornerback job which belongs to Eric Stokes. The slot cornerback job is currently held by Taron Johnson. And at the moment it appears to be his job to lose. That other starting outside cornerback job? Anyone's guess at this point. With several suitors vying for it, making for a nice little competition. Exactly what head coach Klint Kubiak wants to see."I just love where we are in the DB room," said Kubiak. "There's a lot of guys that are fighting to get on the field, and not everybody's going to start . . . and these young corners, these young safeties that are getting a lot of valuable reps right now, and we're learning about what they can handle."Among those cornerbacks who have seen first team reps at different times includes 2024 rookie starter Decamerion Richardson, 2025 rookie starter Darien Porter, and this year's rookies Jermod McCoy and Hezekiah Masses.Richardson and Porter were mid-round picks from previous regimes. McCoy comes in as the hot name because he had first round buzz, but fell to round four due to injury concerns, and for that reason is being brought along slowly. And Masses was a highly productive college cornerback who has been impressing the Raiders since he first stepped on the field in rookie minicamp.Plenty to watch unfold as camp continues.Defensive tackleUnlike cornerback, this position will have a rotation. But the more rotation you see, the more it means there aren't any dominant starters. So, they would like to find at least one and possibly two guys who can hold down the jobs. Right now they don't seem to have that.Through the first three days of camp, there has been a pretty steady rotation of guys. The leading trio appears to be Adam Butler, Jonah Laulu, and Tonka Hemingway. But not necessarily in that order. Because over three days, it seems like a different guy has been the most consistent presence on the field. Lately Hemingway has gotten a lot of time and clearly DC Rob Leonard is liking what he sees from him.At times, however, Thomas Booker IV and Benito Jones have also joined the rotation. Jones is the only true nose tackle of the group, though Laulu and Booker have also filled that run clogger role for the Raiders.The Raiders have yet to done pads. That should happen Sunday when they return from their day off. And then we should start to see these guys distinguish themselves because they will have a chance to actually battle with the offensive line.This article originally appeared on Raiders Wire: 2 positions on Raiders defense in midst of heated training camp battles
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