Getty Former Hawaii WR Calvin Turner Jr.
The Las Vegas Raiders are back in the win column following their second three-game losing streak of the season. However, there are still reasons to be concerned over the coming weeks. It took overtime for the team to beat a bad Denver Broncos team on Sunday and it’s clear the offense is too reliant on Josh Jacobs and Davante Adams. Those two are carrying a lot of the offensive workload.
With Hunter Renfrow and Darren Waller on Injured Reserve, Jacobs and Adams have gotten even more looks. No other skill positions players on the Raiders have stepped up on a consistent basis so the team appears interested in adding a player. According to KPRC 2 Houston’s Aaron Wilson, Las Vegas has worked out former Hawaii standout Calvin Turner Jr.
Las Vegas #Raiders today worked out versatile Calvin Turner Jr., who played wide receiver and running back at Hawaii and was drafted by @XFLBrahmas, per a league source
Turner is an interesting player due to his versatility. He can play both running back and wide receiver. He’s also played quarterback and defensive back in college. It remains to be seen exactly how the Raiders would plan to use him if he was signed. Despite his versatility, Turner went undrafted this year and hasn’t had a chance to land on a roster quite yet. The Raiders could certainly use another playmaker on offense.
Turner Was Recently Drafted by XFL Team
Turner could be faced with a tough decision if the Raiders decide they want to sign him. He was just recently drafted by the San Antonio Brahmas of the XFL. The NFL is obviously the league that players want to be in but Turner would get a lot more playing time in the XFL. He’d be lucky to even see a single regular season snap for Las Vegas.
Perhaps taking a year in the XFL to prove his talents might be the better long-term move than being on the Raiders’ practice squad. However, the XFL will always be there so taking the risk of getting on an NFL team would be too good for Turner to pass up.
Josh McDaniels Offers High Praise for Jacobs
The Raiders are most likely looking at Turner to play wide receiver. They are a bit thin at the position as they never replaced Hunter Renfrow on the active roster. The team only has four wide receivers active right now but does have another four on the practice squad. It’s highly unlikely they view Turner as a running back as the team is stacked at the position. Despite having four running backs on the active roster, Josh Jacobs is taking a vast majority of snaps. He’s been able to stay healthy for the first time in his career and he’s proven to be one of the best running backs in the NFL. Head coach Josh McDaniels has been very impressed with Jacobs this season.
“One of the most impressive things about him is he never asks to come out of the game,” McDaniels said Monday. “That’s a tough position to play in and never come out because you’re getting hit a lot.”
“He’s got this incredible football endurance about him. He runs in there and takes a bunch of hits. He doesn’t look to the sideline,” McDaniels continued. “It took me, honestly, a few weeks to get used to that because you’re normally thinking you’re going to be subbing backs, quite honestly, pretty regularly. I’m used to that from my recent past when we used a lot of different backs.”