Under-the-Radar Oakland Raiders Who Could Challenge for Starting Roles

The Oakland Raiders' preseason opener provided plenty of positives for the team as it continues to develop and improve. One of the most important was the surprisingly strong performance by several of the reserves.

The Raiders are in an intriguing position. They have more talent across the entire roster than they've had in a long time, and they also have several starting positions that are unsettled.

This means that for several players who have been considered locks to be reserves up until now, they have a real opportunity to work their way into the starting lineup.

It's going to take more than a few training-camp practices and one preseason performance to unseat a starter. But based on what they've done so far, these players have shown that the starters ahead of them shouldn't be too comfortable.

Criteria

Eric Risberg/Associated Press

For this list we're looking at players who have played well in practice and performed well in the first game of the preseason.

Any player can string together a few good practices or have one good game in the preseason. But performing well in both exhibits a consistently high level of play. Being able to sustain that level means it's reasonable for that player to get a shot at a starting job.

We're also looking at players at positions without a standout player in front of them. For example, starters such as Khalil Mack, Derek Carr and Charles Woodson are not going to be on the bench. It would take a terrible performance from them combined with an incredible performance over the entire preseason by one of the reserves for them to lose their starting jobs.

That isn't going to happen, so we haven't considered those positions.

There's still a long way to go in the preseason, and there's a lot of football left to be played. But the players on this list have impressed early, and the starters ahead of them haven't shown that they're irreplaceable. If these reserves can sustain their level of play, a starting job remains within reach.

Ras-I Dowling

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Position: Cornerback

Competition: D.J. Hayden, Keith McGill

Of all the players on this list, Ras-I Dowling might seem like the biggest reach. However, an analysis of his performance in the first preseason game when compared to those of D.J. Hayden and Keith McGill reveals that the possibility of Dowling working his way into the starting lineup isn't as crazy as it sounds.

Of the projected starters at cornerback, only T.J. Carrie looked the part against the St. Louis Rams. Hayden and McGill, on the other hand, only reinforced the concerns about the position. They both looked unprepared and overwhelmed. 

Dowling had a good all-around performance. He was solid in coverage and showed the ability to find the ball in the air to make a play, something that neither Hayden nor McGill was able to do.

Hayden and McGill have been the leading candidates to start, and they maintain the advantage. But they could quickly lose it with another equally poor performance in the second preseason game. This, combined with Dowling's continued strong play, should get him in the discussion to start at cornerback.

Larry Asante

Eric Risberg/Associated Press

Position: Safety

Competition: Nate Allen

Larry Asante has been viewed as player on the roster bubble, but he's much better than that. Not only should we consider him a lock to make the final roster, but we should recognize him as a true contender for a starting job.

The primary reason that Nate Allen has been looked at as an obvious starter at safety is because he was one of Oakland's big free-agent additions. However, the actual performances of Allen and Asante make this choice less obvious.

There's a reason why the Philadelphia Eagles were willing to let Allen walk this past offseason. He is a natural ball hawk, which can lead to big plays for the defense. But his sometimes sloppy angles also open up big-play opportunities for the opposing offense.

By moving Asante to the starting strong safety position, the Raiders would have someone who's a reliable tackler and equally effective on both running and passing plays. It would also allow Charles Woodson to play further back as a free safety, which would open up more opportunities for him to make plays on the ball. This would make the defense less susceptible to big plays down the field.

Given how much the team has invested in Allen financially, Asante certainly has a big hill to climb. But he has the ability to provide a more reliable presence in the secondary—something the Oakland defense could definitely use.

Ben Heeney

Tony Avelar/Associated Press

Position: Middle Linebacker

Competition: Curtis Lofton

Of all the non-starters who played against the Rams, no one made a better first impression than rookie middle linebacker Ben Heeney.

He was a good college player, but he was seen as a bit slow even at that level. This raised concerns about whether he'd be able to keep up in the NFL. There was never a question about he had the knowledge to play middle linebacker at the next level.

The question was whether he actually had the ability.

Against St. Louis, Heeney provided an emphatic answer. He showed off his solid tackling and ability to dissect plays. More importantly, he showed that he is in fact fast enough. He was constantly around the ball as he made plays from sideline to sideline. He also displayed good closing speed once he saw where the ball was going.

Like Larry Asante, Heeney isn't just contending with the player in front of him. He's also contending with the fact that the player in front of him, Curtis Lofton, was one of Oakland's prizes of free agency.

However, Heeney has firmly placed himself in the discussion to start at middle linebacker. If Lofton's level of play drops, or Heeney continues to improve, or both occur, it would not at all be a surprise to see Heeney in the starting lineup this year.

Jon Feliciano

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Position: Right Guard

Competition: J'Marcus Webb, Khalif Barnes

When the Raiders selected Jon Feliciano in the fourth round of the draft, he was expected to immediately challenge for the starting job at right guard. However, he didn't stand out over the summer or in camp, which led to veteran Khalif Barnes moving ahead of the rookie on the depth chart. This was followed by the addition of J'Marcus Webb, who has since taken over as the starting right guard.

Feliciano fell further down the depth chart, and he was seen as more of a long-term project who might start in the future.

However, Feliciano's performance against the Rams changed all that. He proved he's not only much closer to being NFL-ready than expected, but he's ready to start immediately. He displayed good footwork in pass protection and was able to keep his man in front of him and away from the quarterback. 

But while he did well in pass protection, run blocking is where he really shined. He joined Oakland with a reputation of being a nasty blocker, and it really showed on running plays where he was able to get a good push.

Barnes was never seen as a permanent solution at right guard. He was seen as a temporary solution until Feliciano was ready to take over.

As for Webb, he has performed well so far in the starting role, but he's switching positions from tackle to guard, and he's played very little in the last couple of years as he's struggled to stick with any roster. It remains to be seen whether or not he can maintain his current level of play.

While Feliciano has seen some time at center and left guard (he's currently listed as the backup left guard on Oakland's depth chart) he's not going to unseat Rodney Hudson or Gabe Jackson. He was brought in to play right guard, and this is where his future rests with the team.

Feliciano now has two men to beat for the starting job at right guard. But he showed that he has the toughness, grittiness and most importantly, the ability necessary to start. Of all the under-the-radar players with a chance to work their way into the starting lineup, Feliciano has the best shot at making the jump from reserve to starter.

Unless otherwise noted, all stats taken from Pro-Football-Reference.com and NFL.com. Performance ratings taken from Pro Football Focus.

Which under-the-radar player do you think has a real shot at winning a starting job? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below and on Twitter @BrianJ_Flores.