Raiders report: Meredith proving to be quick study at new position

The more training camp practices that go by with Jordan Meredith taking all the first-team reps at center for the Raiders, the more it looks as if he might win the job.

It’s a reality that didn’t seem possible throughout much of the offseason. Second-year offensive lineman Jackson Powers-Johnson was considered the presumptive starter. Few outside the organization even knew Meredith would be taking snaps at center.

The opportunity is a dream come true for Meredith, who barely sniffed the field early in his NFL career. He started a career-high eight games for the Raiders last year, but those only came after the team was hit with injuries.

“That’s crazy (to think about),” Meredith said of being a Week 1 starter. “I mean, we’re not there yet. But it’d be amazing, and it’d be awesome to go play with my brothers (on the offensive line). It would mean a bunch, so once we get to that bridge, we’ll cross it. But it’d be cool.”

Meredith, 27, has earned his chance to be on the field.

He’s worked hard after going undrafted out of Western Kentucky in 2021. He was one of the Raiders’ most consistent linemen when his opportunity arrived last season.

Meredith, who played primarily right guard last year, expected to compete for that spot again in training camp. But the Raiders new coaching staff saw him as more of a center and asked him to start working there this offseason.

“So I went out there, definitely made mistakes and then tried to practice during the summertime, get better and just kind of look at the playbook,” said Meredith, who is listed at 6-foot-2, 301 pounds. “Then come back here and just give it everything I’ve got and go out there, make the calls and just don’t look back.”

Meredith hasn’t blinked, especially when it comes to the extra communication required of a center. He said the way it was explained to him is that if the quarterback is the president of the offense, the center is the vice president.

“Any time that you get a bunch of people working together, you’ve got to communicate and be on the same page, whether it’s pass or run,” Meredith said. “So getting the calls out quick and decisive and not hesitating and just going with what the right call is, that helps everybody else out in getting the play going.

“(That part) has been a lot of fun.”

It’s also been a lot of work, but Meredith has embraced the process. He knows the job is far from done. Still, he was encouraged by his performance in the Raiders first preseason game last week.

“I’m just day to day coming in and trying to do my job, learn something new every day and go 100 percent when I get the opportunity,” Meredith said. “I think (the preseason opener) went well. There’s definitely things to correct, and we can be better and get calls out quicker and get up to the line of scrimmage quicker. There’s always something to work on. Just because you figured it out one week doesn’t mean you have it the next.”

Play of the day

Rookie wide receiver Dont’e Thornton Jr.’s speed was once again on display Wednesday.

The fourth-round pick lined up in the slot during a passing drill, raced straight up the seam and caught a long touchdown pass from veteran quarterback Geno Smith. The Raiders, between Thornton and third-year wide receiver Tre Tucker, should threaten teams deep this season in a way they haven’t the last few years.

“Obviously it’s going to open some things up down the middle for us, for sure,” tight end Michael Mayer said. “Tre Tucker with his speed, nobody can catch him. I haven’t seen one person catch Tre Tucker in like two and a half, three years here so far. So that’s pretty crazy. And Dont’e Thornton, I mean, his length and speed, too. He can get out on the edge and really go up for the ball. I think those are two guys that can make big plays for this offense, can make big plays for this team. And I think as that goes on, it’s going to open some things up for us in the middle.”

Close shave

Several Raiders players have been growing mustaches throughout training camp with varying degrees of success.

The trend was apparently started by second-year tight end Brock Bowers.

“Bowers came in with one and he’s like, ‘Everybody’s going to do a mustache,’” Mayer said. “So, I’m like, ‘Great.’ I come in a couple days later with a mustache and he had shaved his off. I was like, ‘Dude, what the heck?’ I literally made him grow his back.”

Meredith also got in on the action, but there doesn’t appear to be any plans to carry the facial hair pact into the regular season. Of course, that doesn’t apply to backup quarterback Aidan O’Connell, who has had his mustache for years.

“That’s just like part of Aidan’s persona at this point,” Mayer said. “That thing is never coming off. I’ve tried to get him to shave it, tried to get him to grow a beard around here and whatever. And no, he’s pretty locked in on it. I think maybe he’s got some magic in there. I don’t really know what he does with that stache.”

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.