Week 1 is here for the Las Vegas Raiders and the Pete Carroll era. While their wide receiver group is a work in progress following the arrival of Amari Cooper to go along with the promising rookies and veteran Jakobi Meyers, the unit might not have to face one of the top cornerbacks in the NFL.
The Raiders will travel to Gillette Stadium for a matchup with the New England Patriots, who are beginning a new era of their own as Mike Vrabel took over as head coach this past offseason.
Nonetheless, New England could be without a key player on their defense after Vrabel provided an injury update on Christian Gonzalez, who did not practice on September 1, per the Boston Herald.
“Well, it just hasn’t gone — again, (Gonzalez) ‘s working hard,” Vrabel said. “Whether it’s, say, one injury is going to be three to four weeks, one’s going to be one to two, everybody heals differently.”
Christian Gonzalez Working to Get Ready for Raiders
Gonzalez injured his left hamstring during training camp on July 28 and hasn’t been on the field since. It’s September 1, and not practicing and gearing up for Week 1 is a setback for the cornerback.
However, there’s still the rest of the week, as he could work his way to being a game-time decision against Las Vegas. Nonetheless, Vrabel shared details of what he’s seeing from the Patriots’ cornerback.
“(He’s) working hard and trying to improve, and he wants to be out there,“ Vrabel added. “I think it’s good for us, and for Christian and the team, trying not to be frustrated.
“Obviously those things happen, and it’s how we respond to them, it’s how hard we work to get back, the communication, all the things that he’s doing. So (he’s) continued to work hard to get back, and we’re trying to make sure that we’re doing everything we can to help him.”
In his second season in the NFL, Gonzalez recorded 11 passes defended and two interceptions, so the Raiders might avoid having to face this lockdown defender to allow for their receivers to have the opportunity to get open for veteran quarterback Geno Smith.
Will Amari Cooper Be Ready for Week 1?
Carroll will have a revamped wide receiver group with the newly signed Cooper being the latest addition. Moreover, Meyers will return to New England to face the Patriots after spending the first four years of his career there.
Ahead of this contest, Caroll gave an update on Cooper and the rest of the group as they prepare for Week 1.
“Well, he’s been a great player,” Caroll said on August 28. “He’s been a great performer. He’s made a ton of big plays in big situations. It’s not beyond his scope to come up and make the clutch play at the right time. He’s big and strong, runs fantastic routes, and has always been a playmaker. So, we thought a chance to add a guy like that with experience, really to help our young guys, might really suit us well.
“And so, for Dont’e (Thornton) on the outside, they’ll be doing a lot of the same stuff. I think Amari’s (Cooper) way can affect him and help him come along. There’s a lot of pressure for him to be the only X over there that we’re kind of going with, and so I think this really balances us out well. And I hope it really suits Jack (Bech) and Dont’e.”
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