The Raiders begin 2026 with 7 White starters and 19 on the 53 man roster. This compares to 5/18 last year, 8/18 in 2024, and 7/12 in 2023.
Veteran Kirk Cousins begins the season as the starting quarterback, holding down the fort until Heisman Trophy winner and first overall 2026 draft pick Fernando Mendoza is ready, whether that is at some point this season or next. If the Raiders fall out of playoff contention, Mendoza should take the reins this season, but however it works out signing Cousins to a one-year $20 million contract was a good move.
Aidan O’Connell, drafted in the fourth round in 2023, completes Vegas’s all overachiever quarterback group. O’Connell has shown flashes, including during ten starts in his rookie season, but has also battled injuries.
The offensive line features three outstanding White starters in LT Kolton Miller, center Tyler Linderbaum, and RG Jackson Powers-Johnson. Miller missed most of 2025 with an ankle injury but is on a Hall of Fame career trajectory; Linderbaum is as good as it gets and was signed away from the Ravens during the offseason.
O-line backups are LG Bryce Cabeldue and RT Trey Zuhn.
Brock Bowers did not disappoint after being the 13th pick of the 2024 draft, shattering previous marks by a tight end in his initial campaign, catching 112 passes for 1,194 yards and 5 touchdowns. He fell off last season to 64/680/7 while dealing with knee issues. After a cleanup procedure right before the opening of the 2026 season, Bowers is hopefully set up to once again dominate when he returns.
Unfortunately for Michael Mayer, drafted in the second round out of Notre Dame in ’23, he would be starting for just about any other NFL team, but for the Raiders he’s Bowers’ very talented backup. Chris Myarick (possibly mixed) is the fourth tight end.
WR Jack Bech was drafted in the second round last year but suffered along with the rest of the Vegas offense during the disastrous final season of washed up ultra-Caste Clown Pete Carroll’s coaching career. Bech had 20 receptions for 220 yards and no TDs in ’25. With a new coaching staff and the veteran Cousins, who knows how to see the field and spread the ball around effectively, Bech should be well placed to have a much better season in 2026. He was the most productive Raiders receiver in the first game of the new season and scored his first NFL TD, but it should be noted that he lagged behind Tre Tucker and Jalen Nailor in snaps, just 40% compared to Tucker’s 71% and Nailor’s 60%.
Running back Dylan Laube is quite talented but has been dramatically underused in his first two NFL seasons after being drafted in the sixth round in 2024. The good news is that he’s still with Vegas and hasn’t been quickly flushed out of the league as happens with so many White RBs. He’s the third down back but similar to his first two seasons was barely used in Week One.
On defense, edge rusher Maxx Crosby is as good as it gets. One of the league’s Iron Men, Crosby plays every down and is the best down lineman in the NFL when it comes to combining tackles with sacks and other big plays. Crosby was shut down due to an injury for the first time in his career late last season with Vegas playing out a lost season but is healthy and ready to terrorize opposing offenses again.
Cody Lindenberg and Tommy Eichenberg are backup inside linebackers. Lindenberg was drafted out of Minnesota in the seventh round this year, while Ohio State’s Eichenberg went in the fifth round in ’24.
Overall this is a surprisingly good roster numbers wise and especially when it comes to players to root for, as Crosby, Bech, Laube, Bowers, Mayer, Cousins and Mendoza are all CF favorites. With an improved offensive line and a new coaching staff, we’ll see if it translates to success on the field of play as the Raiders franchise has mostly been a bottom feeder now for a very long time.
QB: Kirk Cousins, Fernando Mendoza, Aidan O’Connell
RB: Dylan Laube
WR: Jack Bech
TE: Brock Bowers, Michael Mayer, Chris Myerick
LT: Kolton Miller
LG: Bryce Cabeldue
C: Tyler Linderbaum
RG: Jackson Powers-Johnson
RT: Trey Zuhn
LDE: Maxx Crosby
ILB: Tommy Eichenberg, Cody Lindenberg
PK: Matt Gay
P: A. J. Cole
LS: Alex Ward
Practice Squad: OG Nicklas Henning, C Will Putnam, TE Patrick Gurd, DE Cian Slone
IR: TE Carter Runyon, OG Justin Pickett
Number of White Starters: 7
Number of Whites on 53 Man Roster: 19
Grade: C-/D+
Brock Bowers had a rookie season for the ages in 2024:
Veteran Kirk Cousins begins the season as the starting quarterback, holding down the fort until Heisman Trophy winner and first overall 2026 draft pick Fernando Mendoza is ready, whether that is at some point this season or next. If the Raiders fall out of playoff contention, Mendoza should take the reins this season, but however it works out signing Cousins to a one-year $20 million contract was a good move.
Aidan O’Connell, drafted in the fourth round in 2023, completes Vegas’s all overachiever quarterback group. O’Connell has shown flashes, including during ten starts in his rookie season, but has also battled injuries.
The offensive line features three outstanding White starters in LT Kolton Miller, center Tyler Linderbaum, and RG Jackson Powers-Johnson. Miller missed most of 2025 with an ankle injury but is on a Hall of Fame career trajectory; Linderbaum is as good as it gets and was signed away from the Ravens during the offseason.
O-line backups are LG Bryce Cabeldue and RT Trey Zuhn.
Brock Bowers did not disappoint after being the 13th pick of the 2024 draft, shattering previous marks by a tight end in his initial campaign, catching 112 passes for 1,194 yards and 5 touchdowns. He fell off last season to 64/680/7 while dealing with knee issues. After a cleanup procedure right before the opening of the 2026 season, Bowers is hopefully set up to once again dominate when he returns.
Unfortunately for Michael Mayer, drafted in the second round out of Notre Dame in ’23, he would be starting for just about any other NFL team, but for the Raiders he’s Bowers’ very talented backup. Chris Myarick (possibly mixed) is the fourth tight end.
WR Jack Bech was drafted in the second round last year but suffered along with the rest of the Vegas offense during the disastrous final season of washed up ultra-Caste Clown Pete Carroll’s coaching career. Bech had 20 receptions for 220 yards and no TDs in ’25. With a new coaching staff and the veteran Cousins, who knows how to see the field and spread the ball around effectively, Bech should be well placed to have a much better season in 2026. He was the most productive Raiders receiver in the first game of the new season and scored his first NFL TD, but it should be noted that he lagged behind Tre Tucker and Jalen Nailor in snaps, just 40% compared to Tucker’s 71% and Nailor’s 60%.
Running back Dylan Laube is quite talented but has been dramatically underused in his first two NFL seasons after being drafted in the sixth round in 2024. The good news is that he’s still with Vegas and hasn’t been quickly flushed out of the league as happens with so many White RBs. He’s the third down back but similar to his first two seasons was barely used in Week One.
On defense, edge rusher Maxx Crosby is as good as it gets. One of the league’s Iron Men, Crosby plays every down and is the best down lineman in the NFL when it comes to combining tackles with sacks and other big plays. Crosby was shut down due to an injury for the first time in his career late last season with Vegas playing out a lost season but is healthy and ready to terrorize opposing offenses again.
Cody Lindenberg and Tommy Eichenberg are backup inside linebackers. Lindenberg was drafted out of Minnesota in the seventh round this year, while Ohio State’s Eichenberg went in the fifth round in ’24.
Overall this is a surprisingly good roster numbers wise and especially when it comes to players to root for, as Crosby, Bech, Laube, Bowers, Mayer, Cousins and Mendoza are all CF favorites. With an improved offensive line and a new coaching staff, we’ll see if it translates to success on the field of play as the Raiders franchise has mostly been a bottom feeder now for a very long time.
QB: Kirk Cousins, Fernando Mendoza, Aidan O’Connell
RB: Dylan Laube
WR: Jack Bech
TE: Brock Bowers, Michael Mayer, Chris Myerick
LT: Kolton Miller
LG: Bryce Cabeldue
C: Tyler Linderbaum
RG: Jackson Powers-Johnson
RT: Trey Zuhn
LDE: Maxx Crosby
ILB: Tommy Eichenberg, Cody Lindenberg
PK: Matt Gay
P: A. J. Cole
LS: Alex Ward
Practice Squad: OG Nicklas Henning, C Will Putnam, TE Patrick Gurd, DE Cian Slone
IR: TE Carter Runyon, OG Justin Pickett
Number of White Starters: 7
Number of Whites on 53 Man Roster: 19
Grade: C-/D+
Brock Bowers had a rookie season for the ages in 2024:
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