Getty Jermaine Eluemunor with Las Vegas Raiders teammates.
A lot of eyes are on the Las Vegas Raiders‘ offensive line in training camp. The team decided to bring back much of the same group from last season, which was ranked 10th in the NFL by Pro Football Focus after the year.
One of the main positions to watch is right tackle. Jermaine Eluemunor was supposed to play guard last season but injuries to Brandon Parker and Justin Herron led to him manning right tackle for the majority of the season. He has been getting the bulk of first-team reps at right tackle in training camp but The Athletic’s Vic Tafur reported in an August 6 tweet that Eluemunor was getting “some work at guard.”
However, Eluemunor was quick to reply to the tweet and say it wasn’t true.
He doubled down and told Tafur that he has only been lining up at right tackle in camp.
@VicTafur Nada RT my good sir
For his part, Tafur did walk it back and say that he must’ve been mistaken.
Eluemunor has extensive experience at guard, which is where he lined up for the Raiders during the 2021 season. Though he hasn’t been taking snaps at guard in training camp, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him line up at the position again at some point.
Jermaine Eluemunor ‘Openly Pouted’ at Practice
Jermaine Eluemunor came into training camp as the starter, which brings on a new set of pressure. Instead of him chomping at somebody’s heels, he’s having to hold back people from taking his job. According to Vic Tafur, second-year offensive tackle Thayer Munford is starting to eat some of Eluemunor’s reps at right tackle. That is something that isn’t sitting well with the veteran.
“Eluemunor openly pouted on the sideline, and several players had to walk over and try to talk him out of it,” Tafur wrote in an August 4 report. “The seventh-year veteran started all 17 games for the Raiders last season and has been busy on social media this offseason saying he is one of the best right tackles in the NFL.”
There’s still a lot of time before the season starts for Eluemunor to solidify his position as the starting right tackle. However, Munford clearly isn’t making it easy for him.
Thayer Munford Is Ready to Make His Move
Thayer Munford was a seventh-round pick in last year’s draft but was able to earn a roster spot and play in all 17 games, starting four of them. However, he wasn’t ready to take over as the starting right tackle full-time, which is why he didn’t start every game. With a year under his belt, he thinks the time is now for him to go after the starting spot.
“Yeah, I think I am,” Munford said when asked if he’s making his move during his August 4 media availability. “But also, at the same time, it also comes down to the competition that we got in the room. Like, I can be my best. Jermaine, Brandon Parker, we can be at our best, but also, at the same time, we are all here to compete. … We all need to compete and stay focused.”
Finding starting right tackles is hard enough for a team but landing one in the seventh round of the draft would be a huge steal for the Raiders.
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Raiders Player Calls out Reporter for False Report About Positional Change