Following his first year with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2023, expectations weren’t the highest for Jakorian Bennett heading into his ’24 campaign. That was due to the Maryland alum‘s unimpressive rookie year two seasons ago, where he allowed a passer rating of 102.5 when targeted while giving up a completion on more than two-thirds of balls thrown his way.
Fortunately for Bennett, 2024 welcomed another opportunity to prove himself as a starting cornerback in the National Football League.
And proving himself is exactly what he did.
While there were some injuries that hampered his season as a whole and caused him to miss seven games, Bennett was notably impressive when on the field. The 24-year-old improved statistically in a big way, allowing an impressive 67.7 passer rating when targeted in addition to defending eight passes.
Now, Bennett has plenty of momentum heading into his third NFL season. He’ll be a starter once again as he gears up for year three in Patrick Graham‘s defensive scheme. In a defense that has a few questions overall, the Silver and Black will need Bennett to repeat his performance from last year.
The question is, can Bennett repeat his sophomore showing? Perhaps the former fourth-rounder can reach an entirely new level in 2025.
If his ’24 campaign means anything, more success should be awaiting Jakorian Bennett in 2025.
How much did Las Vegas Raiders CB Jakorian Bennett improve in 2024?
To get a more complete look at how much better Bennett was this past season than he was his rookie year, our focus will first be on a few key stats.
Starting with pass breakups, Bennett made a big improvement going from three during his first NFL season to eight in his sophomore campaign while appearing in four less contests.
This helped Bennett allow a much lower percentage of passes his way to be completed.
When targeted during his rookie year, Bennett allowed a completion 68.4-percent of the time. That got much better in 2024, finishing the season with a mark of 52.3-percent.
When Bennett did give up a completion, it was less damaging on average than his rookie campaign. In 2023, the then-rookie cornerback gave up 316 passing yards with an average of 12.3 yards per completion. He then allowed just 233 yards in 2024, allowing an average of 10.1 yards per catch.
Overall, it’s virtually impossible to find a stat in which Bennett got worse. After allowing a 102.5 passer rating when targeted in 2023, his allowed passer rating in 2024 jumped to 67.7. Even when he allowed a completion, he didn’t allow as many yards afterwards.
In 2023, Bennett allowed 132 yards after the catch, compared to just 78 in 2024.
One thing that is worth mentioning is his run defense–that’s an area in which Bennett certainly can improve. He made 26 tackles in 2024; that’s not bad for a cornerback. What is bad is his 16.1-percent missed tackle rate.
While he could be a bigger help against the run, it’s truly hard to be unhappy with the improvements Bennett made this past season. He allowed less completions and knocked more passes out of the air. Controlling the damage post-catch was a tremendous improvement as well.
What can we expect from Bennett in 2025?
There really isn’t a reason to expect any worse of a showing from Bennett this year. He played terrific in 2024, and should get a chance to start again in 2025.
The Las Vegas Raiders did add to the cornerback position throughout the offseason, taking Darrien Porter in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft and bringing in Eric Stokes via free agency.
At the same time, the team also lost a key player in Nate Hobbs.
It’s possible the Raiders roll with Stokes at cornerback as a starter, and it’s equally possible Sin City elects to throw rookie cornerback Darien Porter into the fire immediately. In either case, Bennett proved his worth as a starter last year; he’s now going into another season in the same defense with a fresh body.
Bennett raised his own expectations last year, and should be expected to reach those heights again this year. Perhaps, even taller heights.
*Top Photo: Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images
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