Raiders rookie excited to be back after missing most of camp

Jackson Powers-Johnson did not anticipate this long of a delay to the start of his Raiders’ career.

The rookie offensive lineman missed the first three weeks of training camp with an undisclosed injury and wasn’t activated from the Physically Unable to Perform list until Wednesday. Even then, he was a limited participant in the team’s practice at Allegiant Stadium and mostly sat out the more physical drills.

The best Powers-Johnson can do at this point is try to make up as much time as possible. He has three weeks to state his case for snaps before the Raiders’ season opener against the Chargers on Sept. 8.

It’s going to be an uphill battle for the second-round pick out of Oregon.

“Just like everything, we gotta ramp him back up,” coach Antonio Pierce said.

Being on the field was still a positive step for Powers-Johnson. He’s been champing at the bit to prove he was worth the investment the Raiders made in him.

“It was awesome to be out there,” Powers-Johnson said. “I haven’t been able to put pads on or anything. So just being able to have that feel was great.”

The Raiders drafted Powers-Johnson with the expectation he would start right away at left guard. They believed his strength, athleticism and tenacity would translate immediately to the NFL.

His injury made the team hit the pause button on its plans. Powers-Johnson didn’t practice during the Raiders’ entire 17-day stay in Costa Mesa, California, and didn’t play in the team’s preseason opener against the Vikings on Aug. 10.

“(I needed) a lot of patience,” Powers-Johnson said. “And I got to give a lot of credit to the training staff and my teammates for being so supportive. Just a lot of patience.”

Powers-Johnson worked in the classroom and behind the scenes while he was injured to make sure he learned the offense. It wasn’t the same as being out on the field building chemistry with his fellow linemen, but he did what he could to stay sharp.

“Still able to go to meetings and stay on top of the playbook,” Powers-Johnson said. “Even though I’m not out there I can still get those mental reps off to the side.”

Powers-Johnson’s absence loomed even larger because left tackle Kolton Miller was out as well. Miller also began training camp on the PUP list while recovering from offseason shoulder surgery and has yet to practice with the Raiders.

Veterans Andrus Peat and Cody Whitehair have filled in at left tackle and left guard, respectively, and have done well.

But the Raiders’ plan was to have Powers-Johnson and Miller in those spots. Getting them on the field and on the same page is of utmost importance.

The Raiders want a physical running game that can set up the passing attack.

A full-strength offensive line is key to that happening. The question the Raiders are facing now is whether there’s enough time left before the Chargers game to count on Powers-Johnson and Miller being available.

Miller, who is entering his seventh NFL season, will likely be on the field as long as he returns to practice in the next week. Powers-Johnson might be a different story as a rookie.

“We’ve got a few weeks before the game,” Pierce said. “To sit there and say he’ll probably be a starter, eh, probably not.”

Powers-Johnson said he’ll be prepared no matter what. He knows he has some catching up to do, but he’s thrilled to be back on the field.

“I’m really excited and I feel I’ll like I’ll be ready for whenever the time comes,” he said.

Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on X.