One player that has received a ton of attention throughout the offseason for the Raiders is offensive tackle Alex Leatherwood. After struggling at tackle last season, the Raiders moved him to guard, where he had more success.
But with the Raiders needing a right tackle, that’s where Leatherwood has practiced the most during OTAs and minicamp.
In a recent article by Sam Monson of Pro Football Focus, he wrote about several second-year players under the most pressure during the 2022 season. That list included Leatherwood, who is suddenly not a lock to start for the Raiders this season. Here is a snippet of Monson’s thoughts on the former Alabama star:
“Leatherwood allowed the most pressures of any offensive lineman in the NFL as a rookie (65) and had a 29.0 PFF pass-blocking grade. He recorded four separate games with a sub-20.0 pass-blocking grade, and even if he was seen as a reach at pick No. 17, he is now under huge pressure to show he can be a viable starting offensive lineman for a team that wants to contend in 2022.”
By all accounts, Leatherwood has looked good in offseason practices so far. But it’s important to remember that there are no padded practices, so we can’t take too much away from them other than attendance and where players are lining up.
But Monson is right. Leatherwood is under a ton of pressure this year as the Raiders will need him to help slow down the likes of Khalil Mack, Joey Bosa, Randy Gregory and Frank Clark in the division alone. If he struggles, it could be the reason why the offense can’t quite be as dominant as many hope.