Raiders’ Hidden Gem: Jackson Powers-Johnson Shines at Center for…
Andre James served as the Las Vegas Raiders starting center through the first eight weeks of the 2024 NFL season. In Week 9, however, James remained sidelined due to an ankle injury. Rookie Jackson Powers-Johnson took his place in front of the quarterback in what would be his first career start at center as a pro.
And the rest is history.
In his first NFL contest as a [starting] center, Powers-Johnson took the field for 61 snaps. Whether the Raiders opted to throw the ball downfield or keep the football on the ground, the rookie proved to be a valuable asset as he dominated the trenches against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.
On 41 pass-blocking snaps, Powers-Johnson didn’t allow his quarterback to be pressured any amount of times. He received a pass-blocking grade of 78.4 via Pro Football Focus; the fifth-highest among all centers in Week 9.
As good as he was as a pass-blocker, Powers-Johnson was even better on running downs. Among all offensive linemen league-wide, the 21-year-old’s run-blocking grade of 91.7 ranked second-best this past week.
No center to play for the Raiders has recorded a run-blocking grade north of 90.0 since Week 4 of the 2019 season when Rodney Hudson earned a mark of 91.6; .1 lower than Powers-Johnson against Cincinnati. To find the last week where a Raiders center posted a higher run-block grade than the rookie, you’d have to go back to Week 6 of the 2016 season.
Although it was only one game, it should be noted that this one game was a more dominant outing than Andre James has had in 57 career starts at center. But is switching Powers-Johnson to center worth losing his presence at guard?