As the Raiders head toward opening day, few things seem to be givens.
But in the team’s third exhibition game, a 30-23 loss to the Arizona Cardinals in Oakland Sunday night, three of those givens were clear to anybody watching:
The first: Wide receiver Amari Cooper will be a star, even as a rookie. Cooper had four catches for 62 yards, including a 34-yarder. He’s been even better than advertised throughout training camp and the exhibition season.
The second: Sebastian Janikowski is in midseason form. The veteran kicker made all five of his field-goal attempts, including a 49-yarder. At age 37, he looks as good as ever as he gets set to start his 16th NFL season.
The third: Khalil Mack’s rookie season of 2014 was just a warm-up act.
The second-year linebacker, who had four sacks last season, had two Sunday night and was a force whether he was playing outside linebacker or defensive end. He was in on three tackles but was also a consistent, disruptive presence. He also stripped the ball from running back David Johnson, killing a Cardinals’ third-down play that could have led to a touchdown.
In the new defense of coordinator Ken Norton Jr., it’s apparent that Mack will be a special weapon, let loose against opposing quarterbacks in new and creative ways.
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Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk noted that Mack “was all but unblockable” in Sunday’s first half, when the starting Raiders defense was facing Arizona’s starting offensive unit.
Wrote Albert Breer of the NFL Network, on Twitter: “My God, Khalil Mack is a monster.”
It was a strong night in general for the Oakland defense, making ex-Raiders QB Carson Palmer uncomfortable on the majority of plays while picking him off twice.
But Mack served notice that with a year of learning under his belt, he’s about ready to be one of the NFL’s most dangerous defenders in 2015.
One exhibition game remains, Thursday night against the Seahawks, but there’s no reason to give Mack many – or any – snaps in that one. He’s ready to go against the Bengals in Game 1 of the regular season on Sunday, Sept. 13.
