The Las Vegas Raiders went into 2024 hoping to have one of the better defensive lines in the NFL. The combination of Christian Wilkins, Malcolm Koonce, Adam Butler, and Maxx Crosby was supposed to lead the way for the defense. After injuries to Wilkins and Koonce, that foursome was never able to play together last season.
With the release of Wilkins during late July, the Raiders had a hole in their defensive line that had to be filled. While the expectation at first was players such as Jonah Laulu after the first preseason game, it appeared it might come from another direction. Two rookies flashed during the matchup vs. the Seattle Seahawks. Those rookies were JJ Pegues and Tonka Hemingway.
Tonka Hemingway and JJ Pegues were two-day three picks for the Raiders with hopes of developing into starters. Pegues is out of Ole Miss, who was projected to go higher than he was selected. He is a highly athletic person for his size with movement skills that you don’t see in someone his size at 305 pounds. Hemingway has a great athletic profile as well and with a pass rush upside that could develop into a defensive tackle who could create in the interior.
Hemingway made his presence felt in the stat sheet. According to PFF, the former South Carolina Gamecock had two defensive run stops, a pressure, and a batted pass over 32 snaps. He displayed better in the run game than expected this early in his caree,r and displayed what his potential could be as a starter.
While JJ Pegues didn’t fill up the stat sheet, he did display his ability to be disruptive in the run game. He was able to force running backs to cut back into linebackers and toss the offensive line with ease.
While both players had moments where they looked like rookies, their first performance is something to build on. If both of these players can continue to grow this season, they can become contributors not only for 2025 but the foreseeable future.
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