Getty Las Vegas Raiders HC Jon Gruden.
The Las Vegas Raiders have been very fortunate in training camp thus far as they hadn’t had any major injuries of note yet. Unfortunately, that appears to have changed on Monday. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, starting wide receiver Tyrell Williams has torn a labrum in his shoulder.
#Raiders WR Tyrell Williams has a torn labrum in his shoulder, sources say. He’s going to try to play through it after rehabbing for a few weeks. A tough task, but the big-play WR will attempt it.
It appears as though he will try to play through the pain but he tried to do that last year and that didn’t work out well for him. It’s hard to imagine Williams will still be effective if he’s able to play. This is potentially devastating news for the Raiders as they paid the wide receiver big money last year in hopes he could be one of their top pass catchers.
Williams started off last season really strong but hurt his feet and wasn’t nearly as effective towards the end of the season. The Raiders could’ve cut him loose this offseason and wouldn’t have owed a lot of money. They decided to stick with him as he has a lot of talent when healthy. Whether or not he can play through the pain, this is a big hit to the team’s offense.
Bryan Edwards Could Have Bigger Role Than Expected
Henry Ruggs was already looking like he was going to be a starter at the beginning of the season but with Williams hurt, it’s hard to imagine the rookie isn’t slated as the number one guy out wide. While Ruggs will probably be the top target for Derek Carr, fellow rookie Bryan Edwards perhaps has the biggest opportunity with Williams injured.
He had first-round potential before he was injured heading into the draft. He fell to the Raiders in the third round and was not expected to make much of an impact until further in his career. That might not be the case anymore as the team is going to need help if Williams is out. Edwards has been getting rave reviews at training camp and many were already penciling him in as a future star. Considering he has a similar body type to that of Williams, it was easy to think it would take at least a year for him to find a role with the team. Now, it looks like the door is opened for Edwards to be an impact player from Week 1.
Follow the Heavy on Las Vegas Raiders Facebook page for the latest breaking news, rumors and content!
Raiders Continue Bad Luck Streak at WR
It’s starting to look like Raider wide receivers are cursed. Antonio Brown froze off his feet heading into last season and never played with the team. Williams hurt both of his feet last year. Ruggs hurt his leg earlier this offseason and Williams is hurt again.
The Raiders keep looking like they’re poised to have a top wide receiver corps and then get hit with injuries. It now looks like they will need to rely heavily on youth this season. Ruggs, Edwards and Hunter Renfrow figure to be the top three targets out wide and they have a combined one year of experience between the three of them.
READ NEXT: Raiders Players Rep Jerseys of Team Legends for Practice [LOOK]
Follow Austin Boyd on Twitter: @austincjboyd