The Oakland Raiders are in the middle of a precarious situation on their offensive line. Both projected starters at the guard spots will be absent for the first few weeks of the NFL regular season.
Projected left guard Richie Incognito is dealing with a suspension for violating NFL conduct code. On the other side, Gabe Jackson will be sidelined with a torn MCL.
Originally, Jackson was expected to miss up to eight weeks of the NFL season, but it seems that he may be progressing much quicker as he was not placed on IR.
Raiders head coach Jon Gruden recently provided a positive update on Jackson, via Scott Blair of NBC Sports Bay Area:
“I saw Gabe walking around, so I followed him around to see how that knee is doing,” Gruden said. “Really happy to see the progress that he’s made. We didn’t put him on IR for that reason. We think after the first few ballgames he’ll be close to returning.”
Jackson tore his knee during the Raiders and Los Angeles Rams joint practice at the beginning of August. Without Jackson, backup guard Denzelle Good will be starting to begin the year. Good was signed by the Raiders last season after being waived by the Indianapolis Colts.
Jackson is entering his sixth season with the Raiders. He was drafted in the third round of the 2014 NFL Draft and has started all but one game in his career.
When healthy, the Raiders could have one of the best offensive lines in the league with Trent Brown and Kolton Miller at the two tackle spots and Rodney Hudson at center.
The hope is that Jackson will continue to progress in his rehab and will be returning to the field sooner rather than later.
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