Raiders roster cut-down day: Early thoughts on 53-man roster

Breaking down the initial roster

The Las Vegas Raiders have set their initial 53-man roster Tuesday afternoon. Below are the cuts and here is the current roster:

Here are some early thoughts on the team’s cut-down moves:

Here are some of the notable players waived or released: Receivers Cam Sims, Phillip Dorsett and Keelan Cole, offensive linemen Alex Bars, Netane Muti and McClendon Curtis, defensive linemen Jordan Willis and Matthew Butler, cornerbacks Taylor Hall and Duke Shelley.

The Raiders cut several veterans they signed in free agency including Shelley, Sims, Dorsett, Cole and Willis.

The Raiders kept all nine of their 2023 draft picks, including linebacker Amari Burney (sixth round) and defensive tackle Nesta Jade Silvera. Yet, the Raiders got rid of two of their six draft picks from a year ago as they traded defensive tackle Neil Farrell (fourth round) to Kansas City for a sixth-round pick and waived fifth-round pick, defensive tackle Matthew Butler. A third 2022 draft pick, seventh-round pick, running back Brittain Brown, was put on the injured reserve and is lost for the season. So, only three selections of the first Dave Ziegler-Josh McDaniels draft are on the current roster.

No undrafted free agents made the roster. Undrafted tackle Dalton Wagner was put on the injured reserve and he will be out all season.

The Raiders have a roster exemption for running back Josh Jacobs as he returns to the team, so they will have to cut a player next week.

The Raiders kept six defensive tackles and four defensive ends.

The Raiders have six receivers on the roster with expected returner DeAndre Carter and longshot Kristian Wilkerson making the roster over Cole, Dorsett and Sims.

It’s interesting that Jordan Meredith made the roster over Bars behind expected starting right guard Greg Van Roten.

Teams can claim other players on waivers starting Wednesday morning and can sign free agents (with more than four seasons of NFL service) at any time. Teams can build their practice squad starting Wednesday.

I’d expect the Raiders to look at interior offensive linemen and linebackers for depth in the coming days.

David Long and Amik Robertson beat out Sam Webb, Shelley and Hall for cornerback spots.

Some players changed jersey numbers including rookie cornerback Jakorian Bennett who will rock jersey number 0.