Raiders Get Worse-Than-Expected News on Kolton Miller’s Injury
The Las Vegas Raiders were fortunate to avoid any major injuries through the first three weeks of the season, but that changed in Week 4. With less than a minute left in the fourth quarter against the Chicago Bears, starting left tackle Kolton Miller had to be carted off the field after injuring his ankle.
At first, the hope was that he merely suffered a high ankle sprain. It’s not a great injury for a big player like Miller, but it’s something that he may have been able to return from after a couple of weeks off. Unfortunately, things are worse than expected. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, in addition to a high ankle sprain, a CT scan revealed that Miller has also suffered a hairline fracture.
This means he’ll be headed to Injured Reserve. Considering Miller is 6-foot-8, 326 pounds, it’s hard to imagine he’ll be able to come back this season. He’s a very tough player, so it’s easy to see him pushing to return late in the season if the Raiders are making a playoff push, but if they are out of the mix, there’s no reason to risk him making things worse.
Miller is the Raiders‘ best and most consistent offensive lineman, so this is a massive loss that could be difficult to overcome.
Who Will Replace Miller on OL?
It’s hard enough to find one good left tackle, so not many teams have capable backup left tackles. Shortly before the season, the Raiders signed veteran tackle Stone Forsythe, who previously played for Pete Carroll on the Seattle Seahawks.
He has started 14 games in his career, but has given up a lot of pressures. There’s been speculation that rookie Charles Grant will take over for Miller, but it sounds like Forsythe is going to get the first crack at the job.
“Stone’s played a lot of football and done a nice job for us, and he would be the first choice,” Carroll told reporters on Monday.
The Raiders can’t be afraid to pivot off Forsythe if he struggles. If he’s not much better than Grant, they might as well give the rookie some reps. The team could also consider moving right tackle DJ Glaze to the left side, which is where he played in college, but then that would create an issue on the right side.
Raiders OL Is in Trouble
The Raiders‘ offensive line has already been struggling this season. They finally started to build some momentum against the Bears, but now that’s getting thrown out the window.
Miller was the leader of the group and just signed a huge contract extension before the season. He will be very difficult to replace. That said, the Raiders do have some young players who could step up.
This will be a great opportunity for anybody who gets reps at left tackle. It’s the most important position on the offensive line, so playing well could lead to a lot more positive attention. It’s hard to imagine Forsythe will suddenly turn into an impact player in his fifth year, but perhaps Grant could take advantage of the opportunity whenever he’s eventually put into the lineup.
Seahawks Receive Jaw-Dropping, Impressive Team Grade for September: A Shocking Surge That Has Fans Buzzing
The Seattle Seahawks took some major risks this offseason by overhauling the majority of the offensive roster by parting ways with Geno Smith, DK Metcalf, and Tyler Lockett this offseason.
These moves have paid off through the first month with Sam Darnold continuing to play at a high level, Jaxon Smith-Njigba emerging as one of the premier WRs in the league, and the defense building off its strong 2024 campaign.
This early success has one NFL writer rewarding the organization with a flattering team grade through September.
Seahawks Receive a Team Grade of A- in September by USA Today
Michael Middlehurst-Schwartz of USA Today was very complimentary of the 3-1 start from the Seahawks while giving them a grade of A- through September.
After overhauling its offense and subbing in Sam Darnold for Geno Smith, Seattle could have been forgiven if it stumbled out of the gates this season,” wrote Middlehurst-Schwartz. Instead, the Seahawks have sizzled after a Week 1 misstep against the San Francisco 49ers, surging to a three-way tie atop the NFC West at 3-1.
One could make an argument that the loss against the San Francisco 49ers in the season opener largely fell on CB Riq Woolen, who gave up an explosive play and the go-ahead touchdown in the second half.
Despite the missed opportunity in Week 1, the Seahawks‘ defense has been one of the stingiest units in the league while receiving a boost from the retooled offense with Sam Darnold under center.
Darnold, who ranks third in the NFL with 9 air yards per attempt, has repeatedly taken advantage of the deep shots afforded to him with play-action looks, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba is the only player other than Nacua to have reached 400 yards through four games,” added Middlehurst-Schwartz.
Darnold has 905 passing yards to go with five scores and just two interceptions, which is a far cry from the high-flying numbers he was posting in Minnesota, but he still has the Seahawks playing complementary football to a solid defensive unit.
One beneficiary of the majority of Darnold’s production through the air has been Jaxon Smith-Njigba — who has 26 receptions for 402 yards and a score through his first four games. The Ohio State product appears to be building off of his breakout season in 2024 and is currently responsible for 44% of the team’s production through the air this season.
Could This Offense Become as Scary as the Defense Once the Running Game Hits Its Stride?
Kenneth Walker III and Zach Charbonnet have both contributed to the rushing attack in a new scheme behind a revamped offensive line, but still ranks just 18th in the league with 110 yards on the ground per game.
“The big letdown has been the run game, which was supposed to be the focal point of new coordinator Klint Kubiak’s attack but has turned up just 3.6 yards per carry so far,” added Middlehurst-Schwartz. “There’s still plenty of time and intention to get that phase up to the level of the rest of the operation, however, and an outfit that seemed like an afterthought in the playoff race now is very much part of the early discussion.”
The offseason additions along the offensive line are having a positive impact to start the season. If this unit can continue to improve while the backfield roles get sorted out between Walker and Charbonnet, then this rushing attack could peak over the back half of the season.
