There have been a few small surprises reported from Raiders training camp this week, but outside of the Christian Wilkins saga, which is becoming less about football every day, there haven’t been many negative headlines from Pete Carroll’s first camp with the team.
By all accounts, this year’s training camp has been much more organized than the 2024 version and Carroll seems to have the team moving in a good direction.
In terms of surprise players at camp, there has been some buzz around rookie wide receiver Dont’e Thornton, Geno Smith is apparently looking like a true QB1, and Geno’s backup seems to be looking and playing far better than he did a year ago.
Everyone knows about Ashton Jeanty, and the rookie running back has offered the internet a few highlights in his first NFL training camp, but a veteran player was mentioned this week by Sports Illustrated insider Hondo Carpenter, and Carpenter’s comments on Jamal Adams on Monday were definitely noteworthy.
Adams was somewhat of a surprise signing by the Raiders last week, but the coaching staff confirmed a few days later that the veteran safety will be playing a new position in Las Vegas. Adams has been taking reps with the linebacker group since the start of camp, and he is apparently making an impression in his new role.
“We’re going to talk about Jamal Adams,” Carpenter said on the Las Vegas Raiders Insider podcast. “Who I think has really shocked me. If one player in this camp has shocked me, it’s been him.”
“Pete Carroll went a little bit mad scientist here and [gave] him a look at linebacker, and I think it’s already clear he’s the best coverage linebacker on this Raiders team… I think Jamal Adams has had a great camp.”
It would be a significant development if the Raiders are able to get meaningful playing time from Adams at the linebacker position, but it will be interesting to see if he has been standing out in practice because he can play the position at a high level, or if the team’s linebacker room is so weak that a 29 year-old former safety, who was never known for his coverage skills, is just better than what some would consider a below-average linebacker group around him.
Carroll’s relationship with Adams from their time together in Seattle has been well documented, and it’s starting to feel like the veteran safety/linebacker has a real shot to make the team.
Adams has largely been held back in his NFL career by injuries, but if he can stay healthy, he might be moving in the direction of becoming a shoo-in to make the final roster.
x: @raidersbeat