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OT Kolton Miller Wants To Spend Rest Of Career With Raiders

June 12th, 2025 at 8:11pm CST by Ben Levine

Kolton Miller is one of the Raiders’ longest-tenured players, but the veteran lineman is heading into the 2025 season with lame-duck status. While it seems unlikely that the impending free agent will ink an extension before Week 1, Miller is making it clear that he wants to spend the rest of his career with the organization.

“I want to be a Raider for life,” Miller told Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “I love it here. I don’t want to go anywhere else.”

Miller inked a three-year, $54MM extension with the Raiders back in 2021 that would keep him with the organization through the 2025 campaign. According to Bonsignore, the two sides aren’t close on a new deal, and Miller is currently attached to no guaranteed money. Still, the veteran was present for the start of mandatory minicamp earlier this week.

A former first-round pick, Miller has appeared in 109 games for the organization through seven professional seasons. He’s remained relatively healthy throughout his career, missing only seven regular-season contests. After being limited to a career-low 13 appearances in 2023, Miller rebounded by starting all 17 games for the Raiders this past season. Pro Football Focus ended up grading him 13th among 81 qualifying offensive tackles in 2024.

While Miller will still anchor the Raiders offensive line in 2025, the team may have started preparing for his potential exit. The team used a third-round pick in this year’s draft on Charles Grant, and this followed their 2024 third-round selection of OT Delmar Glaze. That latter lineman ended up starting 14 games as a rookie and is penciled in as the starting right tackle heading into the 2025 campaign.

AFC West Rumors: Chiefs, Chargers, Miller

May 1st, 2025 at 12:51pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Chiefs took a gamble on injured tackle Josh Simmons, who saw a patellar tendon tear ding his draft stock a bit. The Ohio State standout went down six games into the season, and some debate existed going into the draft about his availability for the season. Simmons said (via The Athletic’s Mike Jones) a July return point, potentially in time for training camp, is expected. The Chiefs have doubled up on tackles this offseason, adding Simmons after giving Jaylon Moore a two-year, $30MM deal in the early hours of the legal tampering period. Kansas City, which used four LT starters last season before its makeshift setup unraveled in the Super Bowl, has seen extensive turnover here since Eric Fisher‘s 2020 AFC championship game injury. If Simmons makes his way to the LT role early, it is worth wondering the team’s Moore plan.

Andy Reid said the Chiefs view Moore as capable of playing multiple O-line positions. Seeing as Moore has never played a guard snap in the NFL, this would mean those positions are LT and RT. Jawaan Taylor has underwhelmed at RT, becoming known for penalties and a phantom start that could draw more. The Chiefs guaranteed Taylor’s $20MM 2025 compensation in 2024, but Moore could potentially compete with the free agency miss this offseason. For now, Moore appears to be a Chiefs stopgap at left tackle.

Here is the latest from the AFC West:

Raiders’ Christian Wilkins Could Miss Time In 2025

April 23rd, 2025 at 11:49am CST by Nikhil Mehta

Raiders defensive tackle Christian Wilkins missed most of his debut year in Las Vegas after season-ending surgery to repair a Jones fracture in his foot. Now, according to Sportkeeda’s Tony Pauline, he is at risk of missing “a significant portion of the 2025 season” due to a potential second procedure on his foot.

Wilkins signed a four-year, $110MM contract with the Raiders last March which made him the second-highest-paid DT in the NFL. He recorded 2.0 sacks in his first five games in Las Vegas before landing on injured reserve. The Raiders already need depth along the interior of their defensive line, and an extended absence from Wilkins would make the position a dire need. That could impact the team’s plans in the upcoming draft.

Las Vegas, who holds the sixth overall pick in Thursday’s draft, was considered a likely landing spot for Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty. Now that he’s trending towards the Jaguars at No. 5, the Raiders are expected to pivot to the trenches with their first-rounder. Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham and Missouri offensive tackle Armand Membou are the leading candidates, per Pauline, as well as Texas offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr., according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.

The potential for Wilkins to miss time this year may tilt the Raiders’ interest towards Graham, who is the consensus DT1 in the 2025 class. General manager John Spytek and minority owner Tom Brady were roommates in Ann Arbor in college and could look to add another Wolverine to the mix. Graham also had a long call with defensive line coach Rob Leonard, per Fowler, with a guest appearance from potential teammate Maxx Crosby.

However, some within the Raiders organization are pushing for an offensive lineman, according to Diana Russini of The Athletic. Left tackle Kolton Miller is seeking an extension in the last year of his contract, and the new regime in Las Vegas may prefer to draft his replacement instead. Either Membou or Banks could compete for a starting job at guard or right tackle as a rookie with the long-term goal of taking over on the left side later on.

The Raiders have also explore trading up from the No. 6 pick, per Russini. They could be looking to jump the Jaguars for Jeanty after doing extensive work on him during the pre-draft process.

Raiders’ Kolton Miller Seeking New Contract

April 16th, 2025 at 10:05pm CST by Ben Levine

Kolton Miller is seeking a new contract, and that pursuit is temporarily keeping him away from practice. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Raiders offensive lineman is skipping the team’s voluntary offseason program as he pushes for an extension. According to Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the two sides “are not currently working” on contract negotiations.

At this point of the year, it’s entirely within Miller’s rights to skip out on voluntary practices for any reason. Thanks to his long tenure with the organization, his absence would have automatically raised some eyebrows, but the added context of an extension pursuit adds some intrigue to the story.

The former first-round pick inked a three-year, $54MM extension with the Raiders following the conclusion of his rookie contract in 2023. In addition to entering the final season of his contract, Miller’s average annual value has been pushed down the list as other LTs have been paid. The 29-year-old’s $18MM AAV currently ranks 13th at the position. To top it off, the player’s $12.25MM base salary isn’t guaranteed for the 2025 campaign.

Considering his track record, Miller could certainly justify a contract that surpasses the $20MM-per-year mark. After being limited to a career-low 13 appearances in 2023, the veteran managed to get into all 17 games this past season. He finished the year ranked 13th among 81 qualifying OTs, per Pro Football Focus, the fourth-straight year that he’s ranked within the top-15 at his position.

The Raiders’ new regime surely saw this coming considering Miller’s lame-duck status, and it should be somewhat encouraging that the lineman wants to stick in Las Vegas vs. hitting free agency next offseason. While John Spytek and his staff can briefly play hard ball with Miller, the team ultimately won’t have a whole lot of leverage.

While the Raiders’ OT outlook could certainly change during next week’s draft, the team currently lacks much depth at the position. 2024 third-round pick DJ Glaze looked alright as a rookie, but a Miller holdout would mean the team is relying on the likes of Dalton Wagner, Thayer Munford Jr., and Gottlieb Ayedze for crucial reps. Munford is the only one of that trio with any NFL experience, as the former seventh rounder got into 46 games (18 starts) with the Raiders between 2022 and 2024.

The Raiders are also sitting with more than $40MM in cap space, so it would be difficult to blame finances for a lack of extension. Most likely, the two sides find some kind of resolution before the start of training camp. However, this will remain a story to watch once the draft concludes.

Raiders LT Kolton Miller Returns To Practice

August 20th, 2024 at 10:12pm CST by Ely Allen

The Raiders’ quarterbacks group took a collective sigh of relief today as the team announced that starting left tackle Kolton Miller would be activated from the active/PUP list. The six-year starter passed his physical today, allowing the team to remove him from his physically unable to perform status and return him to practice.

While Miller missed two games in 2020 and one in 2022, last year was the first in which we saw him truly struggle with injuries. Miller only made 11 starts in 2023, adding two games off the bench as an emergency option late in the year. The veteran blindside blocker played through a shoulder injury that would eventually require him to undergo offseason surgery.

As Miller reportedly made good progress through his rehabilitation, Las Vegas made plans to “manage” him throughout the season to keep him healthy. Even with the soft handling of their top lineman, the Raiders still held expectations that they may see Miller ready to start in Week 1. Almost a week ago, rumors started surfacing that Miller would be back on the practice field soon, and it turned out to be this afternoon.

Miller’s return is crucial for an offensive line that’s relatively light on experience. Veterans Andre James and Cody Whitehair provide the team with two likely experienced starters. The team expected 2022 seventh-round pick Thayer Munford to return and start at right tackle, but a hand injury put him in a position battle with third-round rookie DJ Glaze out of Maryland. Third-year starter Dylan Parham should return to the other starting spot.

The team also rosters veteran Andrus Peat, who has been filling in for Miller throughout his absence. Las Vegas was hoping to see second-round Oregon rookie Jackson Powers-Johnson compete for one of the interior line spots, but he spent a concerning amount of time on the active/PUP list himself before returning last week. His chances of nabbing a starting gig, though, have likely been damaged by the extended absence.

OL Notes: Raiders, Giants, Brewer, Nijman

August 14th, 2024 at 10:36am CST by Sam Robinson

The Raiders had been planning to have Thayer Munford replace Jermaine Eluemunor at right tackle, but a hand injury early in camp created a competition. Third-round rookie DJ Glaze has earned more first-team reps upon Munford returning. While The Athletic’s Tashan Reed notes Munford — a 2022 seventh-rounder who competed with Eluemunor for the RT job last summer and saw action at both tackle spots during the season — still has the edge, Glaze has created a position battle (subscription required). Glaze’s chances at earning this job may also have increased Tuesday, with Reed adding Munford sustained an injury to his other hand.

Elsewhere on the Raiders’ front, second-round rookie Jackson Powers-Johnson remains on the active/PUP list. The Oregon product has been out of Raiders practice since early in OTAs, with a concussion sidelining him. Considering the timeline here, it is concerning how long the rookie has been out. Antonio Pierce did say (via Reed) he expects Powers-Johnson and LT Kolton Miller to begin practicing next week, but the former’s chances of winning the LG job — which the Raiders appeared to have earmarked for the Day 2 draftee — have taken a hit. The team does have veteran options in Cody Whitehair and Andrus Peat; the latter has been working at tackle while Miller has rehabbed.

Here is the latest from the O-line ranks around the league.

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/23/24

July 23rd, 2024 at 8:25pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

  • Signed: OT Julién Davenport

Carolina Panthers

Cincinnati Bengals

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

  • Reverted to IR: WR Jared Wayne
  • Released from IR: WR Jaxon Janke

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

New England Patriots

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Raiders LT Kolton Miller Expected To Be Ready For Week 1

July 7th, 2024 at 8:16am CST by Rory Parks

Raiders left tackle Kolton Miller missed four games in 2023 due to a shoulder injury, which also caused him to play less than a full snap share in two other contests. However, it does not sound as if the team has any concerns about his Week 1 availability.

Per Vic Tafur of The Athletic (subscription required), Miller is making good progress in his rehab of the offseason surgery he underwent to address the shoulder issue. We had previously heard that Las Vegas will “manage” the blindside blocker this season to keep him healthy — presumably by limiting his workload in practice — so it should be expected that free agent acquisition Andrus Peat will take plenty of reps at LT in training camp and throughout the season, just as he did in last month’s minicamp.

The club has a fair amount of uncertainty at three of its five O-line positions. Dylan Parham, a 2022 third-rounder who has been a full-time starter during his first two years in the league, has taken the vast majority of his snaps at left guard (with generally middling results), but he will be shifitng to right guard for the upcoming season. Second-round rookie Jackson Powers-Johnson will be taking over LG duties, while 2022 seventh-rounder Thayer Munford is penciled in at right tackle. Veteran Andre James remains entrenched at the pivot.

It is a group that is relatively light on experience, making a healthy and productive campaign for Miller and James especially critical. Plus, while Miller is under contract through 2025 by virtue of the three-year, $54MM extension he signed in March 2021, there is no more guaranteed money left on his deal. If he can sustain the high level of play he has demonstrated over the past few seasons and handle a full slate of games, he will position himself nicely for a another lucrative extension.

Miller, who will turn 29 in September, was the first selection of the Raiders’ second Jon Gruden regime and was taken with the No. 15 overall pick of the 2018 draft. At the time, the choice was decried as a reach based on need, and Miller did indeed struggle in his rookie campaign. He showed marked improvement over the following two seasons, and after landing his big-money second contract, he reached new heights. From 2021-2023, Pro Football Focus assigned Miller stellar overall grades of 85.0, 84.1, and 80.2, all of which placed him inside or barely outside the league’s top 10 offensive tackles.

With the other question marks on the O-line and a relatively uninspiring quarterback situation, the Raiders will be counting on a similar showing.

Latest On Raiders’ Offensive Line

June 19th, 2024 at 2:55pm CST by Sam Robinson

After making minimal changes during the Josh McDaniels-Dave Ziegler period, the Raiders made a few moves aimed to bolster their offensive line this offseason. Though, they passed on a clear-cut upgrade effort.

The Raiders did not capitalize on this draft’s deep tackle crop, leaving Taliese Fuaga, Amarius Mims, Troy Fautanu and Co. on the board at No. 13 in order to take Brock Bowers in a best-player-available pick. With two-year right tackle starter Jermaine Eluemunor committing to New York during the legal tampering period, Las Vegas is readying to plug former seventh-rounder Thayer Munford in as a starter.

This has been a rumored scenario for a bit, but coming out of minicamp, ESPN.com’s Paul Gutierrez points to the Ohio State product being the clear favorite to take over opposite Kolton Miller. Munford was viewed as a player who could push Eluemunor for the gig during training camp last year, but the Raiders passed on elevating the younger player and kicking the veteran to a swing role. This worked out well for Eluemunor, who parlayed his second season as Las Vegas’ RT into a career-best payday (two years, $14MM) from the Giants.

Munford also saw time at left tackle last season, filling in for an injured Miller, who missed four games. Pro Football Focus viewed Munford’s work positively, particularly in the run game, in part-time duty. Ohio State has churned out a number of quality O-line prospects in recent years, and while Munford lasted until pick No. 238 in 2022, he started 45 games for the Buckeyes. He earned first-team All-Big Ten acclaim in 2020 and ’21, providing an interesting background ahead of this starter opportunity.

Raiders offensive line coach James Clegg confirmed (via The Athletic’s Vic Tafur) the team is moving Dylan Parham from left to right guard. This previously rumored move will pair Parham, a two-year LG starter, with Munford and clear a path for rookie Jackson Powers-Johnson on the left side. Though, Powers-Johnson missed most of Las Vegas’ offseason program with an undisclosed injury. Teams are not obligated to specify injuries during the offseason, but the second-round pick missed considerable time ahead of his first training camp.

One of the veteran blockers the Raiders added later in free agency, Cody Whitehair primarily filled in for Powers-Johnson, Gutierrez adds. Miller, who underwent shoulder surgery earlier this offseason, gave way to the other notable UFA O-line addition — Andrus Peat — during minicamp, per Tafur. While Whitehair and Peat look to be insurance options, they each have started more than 100 games. The Raiders received some quality stopgap work from mid-offseason pickup Greg Van Roten — at right guard — last season but did not re-sign him. Powers-Johnson’s training camp status will be worth monitoring, and his offseason absences stand to help Whitehair, who signed a one-year deal worth $2.5MM ($1.4MM guaranteed).

Peat’s extensive past, which includes Pro Bowl nods, at left guard would help his cause. But the Raiders using him as Miller’s fill-in opens the door for Whitehair. Peat also spent much of last season at LT, replacing an ineffective Trevor Penning.

The Raiders plan to manage Miller to keep him healthy this season, per the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Vincent Bonsignore. This could lead to Peat, whose $2MM contract only includes $450K guaranteed, being prioritized as veteran insurance. Two years remain on Miller’s three-year, $54MM extension, though no guaranteed money is left on the veteran LT’s deal.

Peat in a swing role would make sense, given his past at guard and tackle. Whitehair has played extensively at guard and center. The Raiders also drafted Delmar Glaze in the third round, crowding a depth chart that was thinner in 2023. Glaze has backed up Munford this offseason, per Gutierrez. For now, though, left guard may be the only job up for grabs going into training camp.

NFL Injury Updates: Jacobs, Miller, Vikings, Sutton

December 25th, 2023 at 11:52am CST by Ely Allen

To start with, let’s address one of the remaining games of this week. It appears that the Chiefs’ route to an eighth consecutive AFC West title will be a bit easier today as the Raiders will be playing without leading running back Josh Jacobs, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. After starting the first 13 games of the season with Las Vegas, Jacobs is now set to miss a second straight game.

Jacobs was held out of last week’s contest after suffering a quad injury in the previous week. He hadn’t been able to practice during a short week and the team had decided it better to act out of an abundance of caution so as to not risk further damage. The Raiders had been holding out hope that Jacobs would be able to find his way back to the field this week, but an illness combined with the healing quad to ensure that Jacobs would not be able to make an appearance in Week 16. If his absence last week, backup Zamir White earned his first career start, rushing for 69 yards and a touchdown in place of Jacobs.

After a promising start to his career, the last few years have been a bit inconsistent for Jacobs. He followed up two seasons in which he rushed for a combined 2,215 yards and 19 touchdowns with only an 872-yard campaign, though he was still breaching the endzone often with nine touchdowns. After a down year that led to the Raiders choosing not to pick up his fifth-year option, Jacobs exploding into a rushing title with 1,653 yards and 12 touchdowns. This year, Jacobs is at 805 rushing yards on a career-worst 3.5 yards per attempt and six touchdowns.

Jacobs had avoided playing out this season on the franchise tag, after coming to a one-year agreement with the Raiders, but a long-term deal remained elusive. Missing time due to injury at the tail end of disappointing season is unfortunately not going to help matters much when Jacobs enters the offseason at the end of the year.

Here are a few other injury updates from around the NFL:

  • In addition to Jacobs, while Las Vegas will reportedly have left tackle Kolton Miller return today as an active player, it appears that he may only be available as an emergency option on the offensive line, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler. Miller has missed four of the team’s last five contests. In his absence the Raiders have experimented with moving usual starting right tackle Thayer Munford to the left side while having backup lineman Jermaine Eluemunor start on the opposite side of wherever they line up Munford. That trend should continue into Week 16.
  • We already reported on the situation with Vikings pass rusher D.J. Wonnum, but the team lost three other significant contributors to injury during yesterday’s game. Budding tight end T.J. Hockenson, rookie first-round wide receiver Jordan Addison, and cornerback Mekhi Blackmon were all forced out of Sunday’s game early. Fowler of ESPN reported this morning that the outlook for Hockenson is “not good.” While Minnesota is still holding out hope that his MRI will tell a different story, the team is bracing for bad news on the subject. As for Addison, an ankle sprain is projected to have him on a week-to-week status, and the Vikings will hope to glean a bit more information after further testing today, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
  • Lastly, the Broncos played much of yesterday’s loss to the Patriots without their leading receiver after Courtland Sutton left the game with a concussion, according to Parker Gabriel of The Denver Post. Sutton has struggled over the years to find the yardage success he had in 2019 but has rediscovered his redzone proficiency in 2023. The big-bodied receiver leads the team in receptions (58), receiving yards (770), and receiving touchdowns (10) this season. Sutton will have to pass through concussion protocol to return next week in time to help his team in what has become a bit more difficult race for a Wild Card spot.
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