{"id":970125,"date":"2026-08-11T08:57:25","date_gmt":"2026-08-11T08:57:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/970125\/"},"modified":"2026-08-11T08:57:25","modified_gmt":"2026-08-11T08:57:25","slug":"raiders-training-camp-kirk-cousins-returns-to-first-team-rookie-cb-jermod-mccoy-keeps-climbing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/970125\/","title":{"rendered":"Raiders Training Camp: Kirk Cousins Returns to First Team, Rookie CB Jermod McCoy Keeps Climbing"},"content":{"rendered":"

Monday, at Intermountain Health Performance Center, brought a game-week rhythm ahead of the team\u2019s first preseason game. Thursday, the Raiders will play their first game at Allegiant Stadium under head coach Klint Kubiak<\/a> when they face the Arizona Cardinals<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Both Kirk Cousins<\/a> and Jermod McCoy were making heads turn as the Raiders get dialed in for their first action 0f 2026<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s dive into Monday\u2019s training camp practice.<\/p>\n

Cousins Returns to Action After Crosby Skirmish<\/p>\n

\"kirk4<\/a><\/p>\n

Monday, Cousins was back with the first team. He had been held out of team periods Saturday after a Friday scuffle with Maxx Crosby<\/a>. Cousins made up for the missed time. He threw touchdowns to Brock Bowers and Jalen Nailor, connected with Malik Benson on a big play and turned in his best day of camp.<\/p>\n

On the other side of the ball, cornerback Greedy Vance picked off Fernando Mendoza<\/a> during the two-minute period. That is the second time in camp Vance has picked off the rookie quarterback.<\/p>\n

Two players were not on the field. Offensive lineman Caleb Rogers and wide receiver Dont\u2019e Thornton Jr.<\/a> did not practice Monday. Rogers left Saturday\u2019s practice with a trainer but said afterward that he felt fine.<\/p>\n

Related: Raiders Fernando Mendoza: \u201cI Am Nowhere Near Where I Need to Be\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

Latest Update on Jermod McCoy<\/p>\n

\"NFL:4<\/a>May 28, 2026; Henderson, NV, USA; Las Vegas Raiders cornerback Jermod McCoy (28) runs a drill during organized team activities at Intermountain Health Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Cornerback Jermod McCoy<\/a> went from a projected first-round pick to a fourth-round selection on draft day. Although the injury concerns were present, General Manager John Spytek<\/a> trusted the team\u2019s trainers and bet on the former Tennessee Volunteer being a draft day steal. More and more, McCoy has delivered. He has been a regular presence in the secondary while still building back.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the day I came in to now, the way I feel is so much better,\u201d McCoy said to reporters Monday.<\/a> \u201cFirst day out there, I was a little tired but I could see myself progressing more and more daily with my stamina and getting back into football shape.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jermod McCoy is now being held back on reps as a precautionary measure. That is a sign of how much he has progressed since being drafted and how far he has come from his limited work in OTAs.<\/p>\n

During camp, McCoy is lining up against sixth-rounder Malik Benson, who continues to push for his own role. With Thornton out Monday, Benson took on more work with the offense, which meant more of those matchups for McCoy.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery time I am up against Malik, I love because they love throwing the ball to Malik,\u201d the cornerback said. \u201cSo, against Malik, the ball is probably coming there so I am going to try to make a play.\u201d<\/p>\n

McCoy isn\u2019t taking a slow approach. His goals are lofty and he isn\u2019t shy about sharing what his aim is.<\/p>\n

\u201cI definitely want to make All-Rookie, All-Pro,\u201d McCoy said. \u201cI want to have three to four picks.\u201d<\/p>\n

Also read: Maxx Crosby Opens Up on Collapsed Ravens Trade and Future With the Las Vegas Raiders<\/a><\/p>\n

Rookie Cornerbacks Jiving with the Vets<\/p>\n

\"NFL:4<\/a>May 20, 2026; Henderson, NV, USA; Las Vegas Raiders safety Jeremy Chinn (11) warms up during organized team activities at Intermountain Health Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

McCoy is one of three rookie cornerbacks, each of whom brings a different skill set to Rob Leonard<\/a>\u2018s defense.<\/p>\n

Another rookie who has impressed throughout camp is Hezekiah Masses, the Raiders\u2019 sixth-round pick, who has already seen action with the starters.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeing with the 1s is truly a blessing,\u201d Masses said. \u201cI want to thank my teammates pushing me every day and the coaches for trusting me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Masses has backed up that trust. He picked off Cousins during Friday\u2019s practice and has put together multiple days with multiple pass breakups during camp. Secondary coach Joe Woods compared the rookie\u2019s lateral quickness to Denzel Ward, while making clear that Masses has a long way to go.<\/p>\n

All three of the rookie cornerbacks, including Masses, have relied on the veterans, especially in the defensive backs room.<\/p>\n

\u201cStokes is a big brother to me. He\u2019s showing me the ropes,\u201d Masses said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got Decamerion (Richardson), Darien (Porter) and Chigozie (Anusiem). They are a great group of guys and they\u2019re checking on me a lot.<\/p>\n

\u201cJeremy Chinn<\/a> has been in the league for a long time, so he knows the ins and outs. He gets on me every day, making sure I\u2019m doing the right thing as a pro.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related: Las Vegas Raiders LB Quay Walker Says This Defense Is Here to Change the Culture<\/a><\/p>\n

Las Vegas Raiders Depth at Tight End Gets Deeper<\/p>\n

\"NFL:4<\/a>Jun 9, 2026; Henderson, NV, USA; Las Vegas Raiders tight end Ian Thomas (80) and defensive end Clan Sloane (48) during minicamp at Intermountain Health Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

There is more to the Raiders tight end room than Brock Bowers<\/a> and Michael Mayer<\/a>, as the former caught a touchdown from Cousins on Monday.<\/p>\n

Having that depth at the tight end position will go a long way toward building that part of the offense. Kubiak has leaned on the tight ends since the first week of camp, with a heavy dose of 12 personnel.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor us, it\u2019s getting better every single day,\u201d tight ends coach Luke Steckel said. \u201cIt\u2019s mastering this scheme. We still have a long way to go before our first regular season game and we\u2019re exploring every role of this versatility in this offense. Whether we ask the tight ends to catch 20 balls a game or catch zero and block their tails off in the run game, that\u2019s what we\u2019re going to do. We\u2019ve got a team-first approach and whatever the game plan tells us to do that week, that\u2019s what we\u2019re going to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Besides the two picks drafted in consecutive years, building out that depth is vital for this team, especially in three-tight-end sets.<\/p>\n

That depth for the Raiders includes veterans Ian Thomas and Albert Okwuegbunam Jr., who have a combined 14 years of NFL experience and are both blocking-first tight ends.<\/p>\n

However, both have been relied on to catch passes, building versatility among the tight ends.<\/p>\n

\u201cIan\u2019s a guy that we\u2019re going to count on this year. We need him to do everything,\u201d Steckel said. \u201cHe\u2019s kind of been labeled as a blocking tight end but he has a proficient skillset as a pass catcher. When the ball goes his way, we plan on him catching it and making plays with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Raiders move to Allegiant Stadium for a practice open to fans on Tuesday. Tickets for the event are just $5.<\/p>\n

\t\t\"avatar\"<\/p>\n

\t\tBreven Honda received his bachelor\u2019s in journalism from San Diego State in May 2021. During his time at SDSU, … More about Breven Honda<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Monday, at Intermountain Health Performance Center, brought a game-week rhythm ahead of the team\u2019s first preseason game. Thursday,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":970126,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2065],"tags":[3619,7,294,1744,393,2455,2454,6563,6,525],"class_list":["post-970125","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-las-vegas-raiders","tag-fernando-mendoza","tag-football","tag-kirk-cousins","tag-las-vegas","tag-las-vegas-raiders","tag-lasvegas","tag-lasvegasraiders","tag-maxx-crosby","tag-nfl","tag-raiders"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/117076049910254750","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/970125","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=970125"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/970125\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/970126"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=970125"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=970125"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=970125"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}