The Oakland Raiders began the 2019 preseason on a high note, defeating the Los Angeles Rams, 14-3, at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.
Not many of the Raiders’ starters saw action, so perhaps the biggest battle to watch on Saturday night was the backup quarterback one between Mike Glennon and Nathan Peterman.
Glennon is the veteran so he got the start, and he actually did a nice job of running the offense. Glennon played the entire first half and completed 17 of 27 passes for 200 yards. He struggled in the red zone though as he threw two interceptions to end drives that should have resulted in points, which would frustrate any coach.
Peterman played the second half and also had a solid game, completing nine of 12 passes for 66 yards and a touchdown. He also added a 50-yard run on a scramble play, carrying the ball three times overall for 56 yards.
Head coach Jon Gruden, who has been Peterman’s biggest supporter since the Raiders signed him to their practice squad at the end of last season, liked what he saw from the young quarterback in his first bit of game action, via John Schrock of NBC Sports:
“Peterman showed his athleticism,” Gruden said. “He can run. As he continues to gain command of the offense, he’s going to be an interesting guy to watch.”
While praise from his head coach is always nice, Peterman feels he still has a ways to go to fully learn the Raiders offense:
“It’s good. I think I can always be taking more steps like I said, there are some things I missed — run checks and things,” Peterman said of his performance in the Raiders’ 14-3 win. “So, I got to get better at that because I got to put us in the best position to have a good play.”
Peterman feels that all the work he put in this offseason and during training camp though is beginning to pay off:
“I think reps and getting more chances with the offenses and just getting to know the offense more, being in Gruden’s meetings more and talking about what he wants and certain things, it helps a lot,” Peterman said.
Coming into camp, no one really expected Peterman to seriously challenge Glennon for the backup quarterback job, but it looks like that is exactly what is happening after the preseason opener.
Derek Carr is expected to see some action in next week’s game against the Arizona Cardinals, but both Glennon and Peterman will still likely see plenty of action so Gruden can get as much film on them as possible before making his final decision.
