Raiders report: Starting left tackle unlikely to play Sunday

Miller was listed as doubtful on Friday’s final injury report because of a shoulder injury.

Earlier Friday, interim coach Antonio Pierce was holding out hope for Miller to be available despite missing practice Wednesday and Thursday.

“We’ll know here in a couple hours,” Pierce said Friday morning. “We know he’s battling, he wants to get out there. We’ll see today.”

Miller, however, was not able to practice. The doubtful tag means it’s extremely likely he will miss the game.

Miller became a starter in the first game of his rookie season in 2018 and has not relinquished the job, missing only four games.

Thayer Munford does not have an injury designation after missing last week’s win over the Giants with a neck injury and could slot in at right tackle, allowing Jermaine Eluemunor to move from the right side to the left. Justin Herron is also available to play on either side. Brandon Parker was added to the practice squad this week and said he is available to play should the team activate him.

“Part of our process here the last couple of days is next man up mentality,” Pierce said. “So if it ain’t Kolton Miller, it’ll be the next gentleman up. Obviously, everybody’s been practicing the right way, so if that comes to fruition and we have to move on from Kolton to somebody else, we’re not going to blink. And they’re not going to blink. We expect them to do the exact same job Kolton Miller does.”

Eluemunor has taken reps on both sides this week and said he is ready to do whatever is asked.

“It just means we have to take the challenge and play our butts off,” he said. “We have a bunch of good linemen on this team, and we trust whoever is put in that position.”

Not that it’s an easy task to prepare for both possibilities.

“It’s hard as hell,” Eluemunor said. “People don’t understand how hard that switch is and all the preparation that goes into flipping everything like that, especially going against a front like this that generates that kind of pressure on the QB. If it’s me, Thayer, Justin, whoever, it’s tough. But you just go out there and do your thing.”

Injury report

Fullback Jakob Johnson is listed as questionable as he works his way out of concussion protocol, and cornerback Marcus Peters is questionable after suffering a knee injury against the Giants.

Peters got in limited practices Thursday and Friday, a good sign for his availability.

Linebacker Divine Deablo is expected to return from an ankle injury. He was limited Thursday and Friday and does not carry an injury designation. Wide receiver Davante Adams did not practice Friday, but it was just a rest day.

Finding a rhythm

Running back Josh Jacobs lit up Friday when he was asked about the ground game finally having success against the Giants.

“It was fun to run the ball three times in a row for the first time this year,” he said.

Jacobs got the ball on the first three plays of the game and picked up 23 yards on his way to a season-high 98.

“It was one of those things where I said, ‘Just give me the ball,’” said Jacobs of whether he knew that was going to be the way the Raiders started the game. “I said on the first run I wanted to set the tone, whether it goes for zero yards or whatever. It was just to set the tone. Then it went for 5, and I was like, ‘Oh, yeah, let’s run that again.’”

Welcome back

Parker was signed to the practice squad this week, returning to the only organization he’s known in the NFL.

He was drafted by the Raiders in 2018, playing in 54 games and starting 32. Parker was on injured reserve last season and then suffered a Lisfranc injury on his right foot in training camp this year. He reached an injury settlement and was released before returning.

“It’s in my blood at this point,” Parker said. “I was drafted here, and I’ve seen several coaching regimes. I’m just part of the family now.”

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.