The Raiders will of course miss defensive end Mario Edwards Jr., who is expected to miss the first few weeks of the regular season with a hip injury.
But judging by the way Denico Autry has performed in training camp and the exhibition season, the impact of the Edwards loss won’t be as severe.
Autry missed the start of training camp with a wrist injury, but has come on strong. In the final exhibition game of the summer Thursday night against the visiting Seattle Seahawks, Autry had six tackles, batted down a pass and had a sack and four other tackles for loss.
Autry and rookies Darius Latham, Jihad Ward and Shilique Calhoun are showing the Raiders that the depth of this defensive front should be much better in 2016. Latham and Calhoun also had big games against Seattle. Latham made a nice stop at the line of scrimmage and Calhoun had a sack.
Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio liked what he saw across the defensive line.
“Some guys on our D-line showed up,” Del Rio told the Bay Area News Group. “Denico had a really good game tonight. Good to see Shilique and Latham in the backfield a lot.”
Earlier in camp, Del Rio had said he had confidence in Autry as a replacement for Edwards, who is coming off his strong rookie season in which he started eight games.
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“He’s a rugged, athletic guy that can kind of go in between, outside or inside,” Del Rio told reporters recently. “He plays typically sub for us as a tackle, and as an end in base (defense). We like him. He’s a good, rugged player.”
Now entering his third NFL season, Autry, a 6-foot-5, 273-pounder from Mississippi State, was in on 22 tackles in 2015 for the Raiders with three sacks and three batted passes.
Autry said his plan in training camp this year was simple: work hard and get ready to make an impact.
“I just try to get better week through week with the preseason,” he told reporters after Thursday’s game.
The Raiders will open their regular season Sept. 11 at New Orleans against the Saints.
