Raiders QB Derek Carr praises ‘underrated’ Gabe Jackson
NAPA, Calif. — The Raiders value Gabe Jackson. That is most important.
Beyond this, the right guard who last summer signed a five-year, $56.8 million extension seldom receives the national attention bestowed elsewhere on the team’s offensive line. All three of its returners were voted to the Pro Bowl last season, for example. Jackson has yet to be.
His quarterback noticed.
On Tuesday, Derek Carr called Jackson “probably the most underrated” NFL player. The two are members of the Raiders’ 2014 draft class, Carr a second-round choice and Jackson a third-round selection. All-Pro defensive end Khalil Mack was taken in the first round.
Left guard Kelechi Osemele, center Rodney Hudson and then-left tackle Donald Penn were Pro Bowlers in 2017. Jackson was an alternate.
“I guess they just don’t want to put all our guys in the Pro Bowl; that’s what it comes down to,” Carr said. “There’s no way we could have four. We can only have three. Gabe Jackson is probably the most underrated person in the NFL because of the other three. Now you have another first-round pick (rookie tackle Kolton Miller) on the line, too. Poor Gabe is just left in the wind.
“But not by us. We know how special he is. We know how important he is. I will say this: Every time I look at his Madden rating I get mad, though. It doesn’t do him justice.”
How players rate in a video game is not a rabbit hole worth pursuing at too great of depth.
To Carr’s point, however, Jackson received a 79 rating out of 99, tied for 14th-highest among NFL right guards.
That does seem low for the lineman, albeit one who dealt with multiple lower-body injuries that significantly impacted his mobility in 2017.
Jackson was given an 80 rating for pass blocking and 72 for run blocking.
At 95 overall, Hudson is the No. 2 center behind the Dallas Cowboys’ Travis Frederick (96). At 91, Osemele is the No. 2 left guard behind the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Andrew Norwell. Penn received an 86 rating, good for eighth among left tackles.
Notable
■ Safety Obi Melifonwu has missed more than a week of team activities. He suffered an undisclosed lower-body injury on Aug. 6 while working with the Raiders’ first-team defense. They were down four of eight safeties, so the practice represented an opportunity to impress for the 2017 second-round pick. He had hip surgery in December.
■ Cornerback Daryl Worley, wide receiver Martavis Bryant, wide receiver Seth Roberts, safety Marcus Gilchrist, defensive end Fadol Brown, guard Jordan Simmons and right tackle Breno Giacomini were among the other players who did not practice Tuesday.
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Contact reporter Michael Gehlken at mgehlken@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GehlkenNFL on Twitter.