The Las Vegas Raiders are in a good position with their rebuild, but to keep winning, they have to get the best out of their players, including at cornerback.
The Las Vegas Raiders
are ahead of schedule in their rebuild. They got blown out by the New England Patriots
in their latest outing, but the team is still on the right path. Las Vegas already has as many wins as it had all of last season.
That progress shows up at cornerback. The Raiders face a real position battle for the starting job at CB2 across from Eric Stokes, with three young players in the mix: Jermod McCoy, Hezekiah Masses, and Darien Porter. All three want more playing time, and head coach Klint Kubiak just made it clear how he sees the competition shaking out.
Advertisement
Kubiak was asked whether McCoy can factor into the cornerback competition with Masses and Porter.
"He certainly can. We're counting on him. We drafted him for a reason. More specifically, I see DP and Zeke fighting for who's going to start the game, and we know that everybody else is going to play," Kubiak said
.
Here's where it stands at CB2
Kubiak said Porter and Masses are fighting for the starting spot. McCoy can get there, but for now, he's competing for reps.
Masses started the year strong. He played well in the first two weeks and even earned Defensive Player of the Week honors. Since then, things haven't gone as well. He has given up two touchdowns and more than 100 yards, and his passer rating allowed when targeted sits around 109.6.
Advertisement
That's a rough stretch for the rookie, but it doesn't mean his future isn't bright. Masses can cover. We've seen it, even in the regular season. Some of this is likely just him being a rookie.
Porter, meanwhile, has trended in the other direction. He has improved over the last few weeks, and his name has suddenly re-entered the conversation for a starting job. Remember, Porter started at CB2 across from Stokes when the season began. Now he's working to win that job back.
Jermon McCoy still has work to do
McCoy is the most intriguing name of the three. Many viewed him as a first-round talent, yet the Raiders landed him in the fourth round. He had some injury issues before the draft, which helped Vegas get what looked like a steal.
He's healthy now, but he hasn't progressed as much as many expected. When a fifth-round pick like Masses is ahead of a player once projected as a first-rounder, it isn't a great look.
Advertisement
That said, this is the Raiders' process. McCoy can still become a CB1 for this team down the line. It all comes down to getting on the field, stacking reps, and becoming a rookie Las Vegas can count on. Right now, the Raiders don't have that player at CB2.
They do have that in Stokes, and they should lean on him. Stokes has been great, aside from a few plays here and there. The spot across from him is the question mark.
The Raiders have a good problem, and a bad one
Somebody has to step up. Who that will be is anyone's guess, but Kubiak sees Porter and Masses competing for the starting job, with McCoy playing whenever he can. This is an open-position battle, and McCoy has to find a way to get on the field and produce, because we haven't seen much of that yet.
That isn't necessarily a disappointment, either. He was a fourth-round pick, after all. For comparison, Dalton Johnson was a fifth-round pick, and he has barely seen the field, if at all.
The Raiders have three decent young cornerbacks, and all three could eventually start. That's a good problem to have. The downside is that all three are still young and learning. Either way, how this battle plays out over the rest of the season will tell us a lot about the future of the Las Vegas secondary.
Advertisement
This article was originally published on A to Z Sports. Read the full story here: Las Vegas Raiders HC Klint Kubiak is opening up position battles at critical spots once again as they prep for the Buffalo Bills
© 2026 A to Z Sports.
