As the deadline approached for teams across the National Football League to release their initial 53-man rosters, the Las Vegas Raiders shared which players they waived, released, and placed on the injured reserves list with a return designation.
Per the Las Vegas Raiders, the following players have been waived:
DE David Agoha
G Clark Barrington
QB Carter Bradley
G Ben Brown
RB Brittain Brown
DT Matthew Butler
WR Terrell Bynum
T Andrew Coker
TE Cole Fotheringham
DE T.J. Franklin
CB Woo Governor
S Jaydon Grant
WR Tulu Griffin
DT Marquan McCall
RB Sincere McCormick
T Jalen McKenzie
WR Dax Milne
LB Jackson Mitchell
C Will Putnam
S Phalen Sanford
DT Noah Shannon
TE John Samuel Shenker
CB Ja’Quan Sheppard
DE Charles Snowden
T Dalton Wagner
CB Sam Webb
LB DaShaun White
CB Rayshad Williams
The following players have been released:
CB Cornell Armstrong
WR Alex Bachman
TE Zach Gentry
WR Jalen Guyton
QB Nathan Peterman
WR Kristian Wilkerson
The following players have been waived with injury:
OL Corey Luciano
DE Elerson Smith
DE Ron Stone Jr.
The following have been waived due to a failed physical:
LB Darien Butler
The following have been placed on injured reserves (designated to return):
S Trey Taylor
It’s important to understand this isn’t the Raiders’ final 53-man roster, but rather their first cutdown to 53 players. Additional moves are expected to be made in the meantime, such as a third quarterback and depth in the secondary.
Las Vegas Raiders: Surprises on the way to building the initial 53-man roster
For the most part, the Raiders’ initial 53-man roster didn’t come with many ‘surprises’.
Parting with Sam Webb may come as a surprise due to his height as an outside cornerback. Without Webb, Brandon Facyson is the only boundary corner in Sin City who stands at least 6-foot. This is something Las Vegas should look to address immediately.
The Raiders elected to keep only three tight ends; a move many fans hadn’t predicted due to offensive coordinator Luke Getsy’s favor for 12-personnel formations. This doesn’t have to mean much, however – the team may have been dissatisfied with their own depth and opted to find an additional tight end elsewhere.
It’s also possible that 6-foot-three Ramel Keyton takes the field at tight end on occasion, just as Jesper Horsted did despite coming into the NFL as a wide receiver.
The one true surprise is Charles Snowden being waived. Snowden was a standout in preseason, earning the highest pass rushing grade (57.8) via Pro Football Focus on the team from the edge. The 26-year-old recorded the team’s only sack among edge rushers through preseason and batted down the most passes (2) at the line of scrimmage.
With the roster being trimmed to 53 players, the Raiders will now look to strengthen the team as they head into the regular season.
*Top Photo: Ellen Schmidt/Las Vegas Review-Journal/TNS