Brian Asamoah II
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New Las Vegas Raiders LB Brian Asamoah II.
The Las Vegas Raiders‘ 53-man roster is mostly set ahead of the regular season opener against the New England Patriots. However, they continue to tinker with their practice squad.
It was reported that quarterback Jeff Driskel was getting signed previously, but the team had to let go of a player to make room. The Raiders announced the Driskel signing, along with the addition of linebacker Brian Asamoah II.
Asamoah was a third-round pick of the Minnesota Vikings in 2022 after a standout career at Oklahoma. He played 46 games the last three seasons in Minnesota, but was released during training camp. He had a brief stint with the Tennessee Titans, but was part of the final roster cuts.
Asamoah is still young and athletic, so there could be some potential there to unlock. The Raiders are pretty deep at linebacker, but most of them are strong in the run game or as pass rushers.
If Asamoah can prove to be an asset in the passing game, he’ll have a chance to get promoted to the active roster. For now, he’ll have to work on the practice squad and learn the system. His best chance early on will be trying to make plays on the practice squad.
Trey Taylor & Matt Jones Cut
With the two additions to the practice squad, the Raiders also had to let go of two players. Safety Trey Taylor and linebacker Matt Jones were the ones to get the axe.
Taylor was a seventh-round pick for Las Vegas last year, and there was some hope that he could be an impact player due to the fact that he’s the nephew of Hall of Fame safety Ed Reed. He also won the Jim Thorpe Award in 2023 while at Army. Unfortunately, he missed most of his rookie season due to injury and will now have to find work elsewhere.
Jones was an undrafted rookie this offseason, so it was always going to be an uphill battle for him to make the roster.
Malcolm Koonce Hoping for Comeback Year
The Raiders’ defense has some major question marks at all three levels. If the defensive line can play at a high level, that would help mask a lot of issues.
Last year, the defensive line was supposed to be a major strength, but they never got to see the group at full strength, as Malcolm Koonce missed the entire season due to injury. He’s hoping to make a comeback this season and praised head coach Pete Carroll.
“I had a conversation with Pete (Carroll) and he was just telling me the type of player he sees me as and what he likes about me on film,” Koonce told Raiders.com. “It never felt like I couldn’t talk to them directly. It always felt like they were here and willing to talk to me through that process.”
Koonce might not be able to hit the ground running as he continues to recover from injury, but he should get back to 100% at some point this season.
“Football isn’t just something you can walk out and do,” he said. “I feel like there’s little things you forget as you’re rehabbing like hand placement or pad level and stuff like that.”