The Raiders have been shuffling around their offensive line in the first half of training camp, particularly at the center and guard positions, and from the outside it’s hard to tell exactly what’s going on.
Even beat writers covering the team have been scratching their heads a little as presumed starters, including Jackson Powers-Johnson, have been taking reps all over the interior of the O-line and sometimes with the second team.
Powers-Johnson spent portions of Friday’s practice as a second-string guard and the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Vinny Bonsignore believes the coaching staff might be trying to send him a message.
“[There are] a lot of different layers to this, but it would be hard if I was Jackson Powers-Johnson, not to say that I’m being singled out or anything like that… it would be hard if I was Jackson Powers-Johnson, not to feel like I’ve been kind of put on notice a little bit,” Bonsignore said on the Vegas Nation First and 10 podcast.
Adam Hill, who is Bonsignore’s co-host on the podcast, added that some of Powers-Johnson’s comments in the offseason could have played a role in the situation, as well.
“Also, could there potentially be something to Jackson Powers Johnson [being] very public about [being] the center now?” Hill asked on the podcast. “We talked about it yesterday. ‘I’m going to fly to Miami, I’m going to welcome Geno Smith as his new starting center. I’m going to welcome Ashton Jeanty as his new starting center.’”
“You have to earn that. Maybe that’s the message that the coaches are sending to [Powers-Johnson],” Hill continued. “You can publicly proclaim this, but you’re going to earn it on the field, and that could be part of this, too. Again, I think that there’s many possible reasons why this is happening. One of them could be it’s just a genuine, legitimate competition.”
One offseason comment from Powers-Johnson that the Review-Journal hosts didn’t reference was the way Powers-Johnson said he moved into the starting job at center a year ago.
In Powers-Johnson’s own words, he essentially told former head coach Antonio Pierce that he was going to be taking over at center when Andre James left a game with an injury.
“We’re playing the Chiefs the first time and Andre [James] ended up going down, and they were going to put someone else in at center, and I’m like, ‘Nah, f— this,’” Powers-Johnson said on The Rush with Maxx Crosby.
“I went up to [Antonio Pierce] and I was like ‘Coach, respectfully, I’m going to play f—ing center. I won the Rimington [award]. I can do this and I don’t care what you say. I’m going to play center.’”
It was an entertaining story from Powers-Johnson on the way things went down, but from a coaching standpoint it’s fair to wonder if the new coaching staff had a little different perspective on the sound bite.
x: @raidersbeat
Not a bad idea to see how all the young guys mesh and play different positions and a great lesson in humility. He must understand he doesn’t call shots and gotta earn what he gets. !
Play the position they put you in. Zip it play hard and play tough young buck. Your day and time will come. If you know how good you are prove it! All the pieces will fall in place! Raider Nation.
Just protect our quarterbacks.