Las Vegas

Raiders

Thornton has been dealing with an undisclosed injury that has prevented the wideout from practicing over the last month. The 23-year-old can return in four weeks, but there’s no timeline as to when the 2025 fourth-round pick will return to the Vegas lineup.

The Raiders had the No. 1 waiver spot and used it to claim just one player, cornerback Darrell Luter, who was released by the 49ers Sunday. Luter is likely to join the active roster for a team in desperate need of depth pieces in the secondary.

Fresh off a national championship with the Hoosiers, Hemby was a “name” UDFA but couldn’t crack the Raiders’ suddenly deep backfield even after Ashton Jeanty’s ankle injury. He will be a candidate for the practice squad. Also waived/released by the Raiders were QB Jacob Clark, DT Brandon Cleveland, OL Braeden Daniels, LS Tyler Duzansky, FB Patrick Gurd, EDGE Jahfari Harvey, OT Niklas Henning, WR Shedrick Jackson, OT Isaish Jatta, S Devin Lafayette, DT Treven Ma’ae, K Kansei Matsuzawa, T Kamar Missouri, CB Caleb Offord, CB Devyn Perkins, C Will Putnam, DE Cian Slone, LB Xavian Sorey, DT Gary Smith, CB Greedy Vance, OT Dalton Wagner, WR E.J. Williams Jr., WR Phillip Dorsett, WR Brandon Johnson, LB Buddy Johnson, LB Cameron McGrone, TE Chris Myarick, RB Dare Ogunbowale, TE Albert Okwuegbunam, LB Segun Olubi and WR Deven Thompkins.

Okwuegbunam was once a key part of the Broncos’ tight end rotation in 2021, but has only appeared in one game over the last two years. He caught five passes for 36 yards in a single game for the Raiders last season. Las Vegas now releases the 28-year-old as he looks for a new practice squad home for 2026.

The trade was first reported by NFL Insider Ian Rapoport, who added that the Jets and Raiders are “flopping” 2027 sixth- and seventh-round picks as part of the deal. Meredith started 19 games for the Raiders over the last two years and signed a one-year deal as a restricted free agent in the offseason. Now he’ll head to the Jets, where he’ll serve as much-needed interior offensive line depth.

The veteran third-down back would still seem to be a fit for this roster and could be brought back after the 53-man cutdown or kept as a practice-squad elevation early in the season. If not, Mike Washington will probably get more time early.

Appearing on NFL Live Friday afternoon, Fowler said that people inside the Raiders’ building and around the league still expect Cousins to be named the starter. Raiders HC Klint Kubiak declined to name a starting quarterback Friday morning. Following the loss of Thursday’s preseason game against the 49ers, Kubiak said rookie Fernando Mendoza needs another three preseason games before going as far as mentioning that Mendoza’s practice reps will decline once the regular season begins. While Kubiak continues to drag his feet when it comes to the official announcement, all signs still point to Cousins being named the starter at some point eventually.

Raiders coach Klint Kubiak was asked about the backfield’s status with Washington coming off top-tier preseason play while RB Ashton Jeanty (ankle) rehabs his recent injury. Kubiak said he is “not making any promises on percentages of play time,” but he thinks both backs “will prepare to play a lot of football and as these games unfold, you react to the game.” McFadden used the term “1-2 punch” to sum up Kubiak’s potential running back usage. McFadden also notes that “in May, Kubiak talked about using Jeanty as a bell cow running back,” and reports of that nature continued rolling in through early August. Washington has wowed as of late, though, and may be able to generate FLEX-worthy stat lines alongside Jeanty this season.

We still don’t know what Thornton is dealing with, but the second-year receiver hasn’t practiced since August 7th. Kubiak said earlier this month that he expected Thornton to return sometime during the preseason, but that didn’t come to fruition. Even if he’s able to make it back on the practice field ahead of Week 1, Thornton is unlikely to make any major contributions to the offense at this time.

Funny enough, it’s the same line Kubiak provided to reporters on Tuesday when asked about the health of his RB1. Kubiak did say that the Raiders were “counting on (Jeanty)” for Week 1, but that’s hardly a sign that the Raiders expect him to suit up. With teams not being required to release official injury reports until the week leading up to the first game of the season, it’s possible that we won’t have a clear answer regarding Jeanty and his availability until the Raiders begin preparing for Week 1’s game against the Dolphins. In the event Jeanty can’t go, rookie Mike Washington is expected to see a substantial role after a solid preseason in which he rushed 23 times for 168 yards while averaging an impressive 7.3 YPC. Washington is worth a draft pick in all formats right now, especially with Jeanty’s status up in the air.