Raiders Open First Training Camp of the Josh McDaniels Era

Raiders training camp is fully underway in Henderson, Nevada, with veterans reporting Wednesday to join the incoming rookies, who reported to camp on Monday. The Raiders were the first team in the NFL to fully open training camp, their first under new head coach Josh McDaniels.

“It’s the thing you love to do the most in our profession,” McDaniels said. “Certainly there’s a lot of anticipation and excitement today.”

Four Raiders Placed on PUP List

The Raiders placed DT Johnathan Hankins, CB Trayvon Mullen Jr., DT Bilal Nichols and WR Dillon Stoner all on the Physically Unable to Perform list (PUP).

Mullen Jr., 24, had a very disappointing season in 2021 after a strong season in 2020. He was projected by many to make a big step forward in 2021, but injuries limited him to only five games played. Mullen Jr. missed the last five games of the season, including their Wild Card Round playoff loss to the Cincinnati Bengals.

“I know all those guys are working really hard, extremely hard, doing everything they can to get back out there on the field as soon as possible,” McDaniels said. “If you start training camp with 90 guys out there on the field, you’re lucky.”

The Raiders may remove players off the PUP list at any time during camp. But if a player remains on the PUP list come Week 1, they will miss at least the first four games of the season.

McDaniels on his New Job as Head Coach

McDaniels is back as an NFL head coach for the first time since 2010, his last year as head coach of the Denver Broncos. Although it has been quite a while now since he last roamed the sidelines as a head coach, McDaniels has been one of the most successful offensive coordinators in the NFL since his departure from Denver, doubling his collection of Super Bowl rings from three to six in the 2014, 2016 and 2018 seasons with the New England Patriots.

“The anxiety you feel is a good thing, because you want to do right in your position, your job,” Josh McDaniels said about the start of training camp.

“I feel like I’ve gone through a few of these and just really trying to enjoy the process as being a head coach at this point. Got a lot of great people here that are on top of all the things they need to be on top of. As I’ve said before, just trying to do the right thing in my role and be a good leader for our team.”