Raiders report: WR hopes to hit personal milestone in season finale

Raiders wide receiver Jakobi Meyers knows exactly how many receiving yards he needs Sunday against the Chargers to reach the 1,000-yard plateau for the first time in his career.

Nobody will let him forget.

“Everybody has been telling me the last few weeks,” Meyers said. “They’ve been making sure I know. It would mean a lot to the people supporting me.

“My mom almost threatened me to get there the other day.”

Meyers has a career-high 904 yards in his sixth NFL season and second with the Raiders. His previous best was 866 yards with the Patriots in 2021.

“It would mean a lot (to get 1,000 yards),” Meyers said. “I put in a lot of work to try to go get that. If I don’t, I’m not mad at the season, but I’m going to definitely try to get it. I’m not going to sit back and act like I don’t acknowledge it. I know I’m close and I’m going to do everything I can to get there.

“This would be a big moment for a lot of people in my life that helped me get to this point.”

Meyers isn’t usually one to focus on individual stats. He even suggested the obsession over 1,000 yards by receivers and running backs is part of what’s wrong with football.

But he also knows this kind of milestone could prove a lot of his doubters wrong.

“Every yard has been earned this year and over my whole career, so I take pride in it,” Meyers said. “Doing it when people didn’t think I could, being undrafted and still being here doing it. I remember being with the Patriots and people saying I wouldn’t even be able to start on another team and I’m still here.”

Coach Antonio Pierce said Meyers has always been about the team, so sometimes it’s OK to strive for a personal milestone.

“You love to see guys get their individual awards and accolades,” Pierce said. “Being around Jakobi, he’s just a team player who wants to win and wants to go out as a winner.”

Despite posting the best season of his career, Meyers isn’t going to forget what has made him such a popular teammate with the Raiders.

“I feel like I do a lot more than get receiving yards,” he said. “I try to be a good teammate, try to block, throw passes when they let me. There’s a million things you can do to contribute to a win.”

Injury report

Running back Ameer Abdullah will miss Sunday’s game with a foot injury. Abdullah recorded the first 100-yard game of his 10-year NFL career last week.

Cornerback Nate Hobbs is questionable after sitting out Friday’s practice with an illness.

Left guard Jordan Meredith is the only other player with a game day designation. He’s questionable after practicing on a limited basis Thursday and Friday with an ankle injury that caused him to miss the Raiders’ last two games.

Pierce indicated Meredith would not return to the starting lineup even if he’s healthy enough to play. The Raiders’ plan is to keep Andre James at center and rookie second-round pick Jackson Powers-Johnson at left guard.

“We’ll stay with the same five guys that were starting last week,” Pierce said.

Blocking it out

Tight end Michael Mayer hasn’t put up gaudy receiving numbers this year, but he has made huge strides as a blocker.

“My blocking was horrible last year,” said Mayer, who missed six games for personal reasons this season. “It was bad. I feel like I’ve improved greatly on that this year. I feel really confident in my blocking game for sure.”

Mayer said his time away helped him find some peace and better prepared him to deal with adversity.

“I’ve learned a lot about myself, for sure,” he said. “I really have. My religion has grown stronger. My ability to enjoy the game of football has grown very strong. And I’ve learned to not be so tense and not be so nervous and not be so anxious. Just enjoy the game and enjoy being out there with my brothers.”

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