Jermod McCoy missing practice? All part of the plan: Raiders training camp notes

HENDERSON, Nev. — The first notable absence of the Las Vegas Raiders’ training camp came on Thursday: Rookie cornerback Jermod McCoy was not present. He had participated in every session leading up to the practice, though assistant head coach Mike McCoy said there is no cause for concern.

“We’ve got a plan for him,” McCoy said. “We laid this out, a plan for him, a long time ago, and this was a part of his rest.”

The Raiders are managing a knee ailment that caused McCoy to drop to the fourth round in April’s NFL Draft. The rookie missed his final collegiate season at Tennessee with a torn right ACL, from which he has since recovered. But an issue with the cartilage in his knee had teams worried about his prospects, causing them to pass.

McCoy was held out from the majority of OTAs and all of mandatory minicamp under team supervision, which head coach Klint Kubiak said is being led by wellness coordinator Alex Guerrero. Kubiak said McCoy was due for “plenty of reps” in training camp, which rang true until Thursday. Kubiak called having McCoy available to begin camp “a positive start” and said it was “excellent” to see how much work he’d been getting.

McCoy’s talent had shown through in his first few practices. He had an impressive pass break up on an E.J. Williams Jr. slant during a team period, and had tight coverage to force an incompletion in the end zone against Dareke Young. He also made rookie mistakes at times; he was forced to commit a hold against Shedrick Jackson after getting beat on a go ball, and struggled to break on hitch routes in 1-on-1 situations.

The rookie ran predominantly with the second and third units in his first practices, and his opportunities were limited as the team continued to manage his reps. How much McCoy can continue to go in training camp and the preseason will be telling for his availability in his first year.

Rookie Keyron Crawford also left practice on Thursday after colliding with Malcolm Koonce in the backfield while rushing the passer. The edge defender walked off the field with team trainers and did not return, though Koonce continued to practice. Mike McCoy did not have an immediate update on Crawford’s status after the session.

First offensive line shakeup

Raiders offensive line coach Rick Dennison said earlier this week that, as they get further in their install, they’ll “pull and keep moving guys around” up front. The first such occurrence came Thursday.

Las Vegas rotated Jackson Powers-Johnson and Caleb Rogers at right guard with the first team. Powers-Johnson, who’d taken all the starting reps to this point, assumed his position for the first team period. But Rogers supplanted him during the second team period and the Raiders continued to alternate them for the rest of practice.

The team had kept its starting front five the same to begin camp, and Rogers had been predominantly playing left guard with the second unit. McCoy said the changes were all about fostering competition at the position.

“Coach (Kubiak) has put a plan in place and (we’re) moving guys around, seeing who can do what, giving guys opportunities to show what they can do with different groups,” McCoy said. “That’s gonna be a constant change all throughout camp.”

Powers-Johnson was the team’s starting right guard through the first 10 weeks of 2025 before suffering a season-ending ankle injury. Rogers, then a rookie, started the final six games of the year in his absence. The Raiders were pleased with Rogers’ performance and his growth going into Year 2, as Kubiak was impressed with his preparation during the offseason program. Rogers’ development earned him an opportunity to compete for a starting spot, which Powers-Johnson embraced.

“It’s just competition,” Powers-Johnson said. “Having fun, playing football.”

Powers-Johnson has had a tumultuous start in the NFL after a decorated college career at Oregon. He played both left guard and center as a rookie before transitioning to right guard last season under a new coaching staff. He’s now competing for his job under new leadership again, but said he feels more comfortable with this group.

“I’m going out every day trying to get better at something knowing that I can go back to a position room and not be treated differently every single day, be treated the same way and be treated how the coaches tell us they’re going to treat us,” Powers-Johnson said.

Powers-Johnson said focusing on his future can create anxiety, which neither he nor the team need. He’s trying to focus internally instead, which includes staying off social media. He said he stopped checking his accounts around his wedding in July, except for watching fly fishing videos on YouTube.

“Staying off that is staying off the negativity, staying out of the anxiety,” Powers-Johnson said. “Make it as simple as possible. It’s football. It’s something that I’ve loved since I was a little kid. All these guys, all my teammates, all my coaches, everybody in this building loves it. So being able to come together and go play that, go support that, it’s special and we feel lucky.”

Powers-Johnson said he doesn’t feel anxious now, but for every player anxiety comes naturally as the season nears. He’s determined to channel it in a positive way.

Kubiak visiting Kubiak

Kubiak had a special guest at Raiders training camp on Thursday. Gary Kubiak, the Super Bowl-winning head coach and Klint’s father, walked out to the field before practice with his son before watching him run his team.

Several members of this Raiders regime have ties to the elder Kubiak. General manager John Spytek was a national scout with the Denver Broncos for a season when Gary was head coach. McCoy, offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko, offensive line coach Rick Dennison, defensive backs coach Joe Woods and quarterbacks coach Mike Sullivan are among the current Raiders coaches who’ve worked with Gary in the past.

McCoy, whose relationship with Gary dates back to when McCoy was a quarterback and Gary Kubiak the offensive coordinator with the Broncos in 1995, said having him around the team is “unbelievable.”

“Gary is a phenomenal coach and person,” McCoy said. “To have your kids do what they do, it’s such a cool thing. It’s awesome to see him here.”

McCoy had not worked with Klint Kubiak before this season, but McCoy has become a coach Kubiak has leaned on as he conducts his first training camp. He acknowledged that the Kubiaks are different people, but that inherently from growing up around his dad’s teams Klint picked up much of his approach to coaching from Gary.

“They coached the players extremely hard, and then they also loved them up. They let them know that, ‘Hey, we care about the people also,’” McCoy said. “Klint’s the exact same way. The importance of family and what that means. Gary did a great job where he’s been, and Klint’s done a great job here building the culture. We’re gonna coach the guys hard, but we’re also going to take care of you as a human being and love you up. We care about you.”

Gary hasn’t been tremendously present around the Raiders since Klint got the job — this was his first public appearance at a practice. But he’ll undoubtedly be a resource for Klint as he embarks on his first season has a head coach.