Alex Cappa a good case study in John Spytek’s roster building, evaluation skills

Offensive lineman was one of Raiders GM’s first new additions in Las Vegas

The connection with John Spytek and Alex Cappa is undeniable.

Spytek was part of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers front office that made Cappa — a Division II small-school product out of Humboldt State (now Cal Poly Humboldt) — a third-round pick (94th overall) in the 2018 NFL Draft.

(Full disclosure: I’m a Humboldt alumni myself and covered Cappa during his time with the Lumberjacks football team.)

Cappa was an integral part of the Bucs offensive line that protected quarterback Tom Brady and while he missed Tampa’s Super Bowl LV victory due to a fractured ankle, the 6-foot-6 and 312-pounder was a mainstay up front.

As you can see, the connections run deep. Spytek is now the Las Vegas Raiders general manager and Brady is a minority owner of the Silver & Black. And one of Spytek’s initial additions to his and head coach Pete Carroll’s roster: Cappa.

A cap casualty for the Cincinnati Bengals after he inked a four-year, $35 million contract, Cappa was released on March 3 and on March 5, inked a two-year, $11 million deal with the Las Vegas.

With Cappa now in the fold, his signing provides a good case study in Spytek’s roster building and player evaluation acumen. It’s no secret that Cappa struggled mightily during the 2024 season with the Bengals as he ranked bottom of the barrel as a starting right guard in 17 starts. The two seasons prior, the offensive lineman was a reliable and stout right guard playing and starting in all of but one game (in 2022).

Cappa’s most recent season output rightfully brought on questions of why did the Raiders hand over a payday to a guard that wasn’t up to league par. But Cappa’s signing can play out in two ways:

1. Spytek knows something that many don’t and Cappa has a resurgent year in Silver & Black.
2. Cappa’s 2024 was indicative of his career trajectory now and he struggles once more.

Either way, it’s something to keep an eye on.

Especially considering Raiders team columnist Paul Gutierrez (ESPN’s former beat writer for the team) dropped a dime regarding Cappa on Raider Nation Radio’s Unnecessary Roughness with Q Meyers last week.

“I think Cappa all but has the right guard position sewn up,” Gutierrez said.

Gutierrez sentiment lines up with other beat writers who attended OTAs and mandatory minicamps in May and June, respectively. Cappa was the mainstay at right guard in between center Jackson Powers-Johnson and right tackle DJ Glaze.

A team’s offensive line is often the heartbeat of the offense — regardless of how sexy skill positions are like quarterback or running back — and if the trench warriors aren’t up to snuff, the Raiders aren’t going to be able to do enough on offense.

Carroll has entrusted the offensive line development on a trio of coaches: His son Brennan Carroll who is the run game coordinator/offensive line coach; Andy Dickerson who is the assistant offensive line boss; and Joe Philbin who is a senior offensive assistant that was held on to from the previous Raiders’ staff. Philbin has a long history of coaching offensive lines and was the interim line boss last season.

As Las Vegas embarks on an integral training camp later this week and next — rookies report on July 17 while veterans join them on July 22 — identifying the starting five on the offensive line will parlay itself into backups and depth. And when the pads come on and the Raiders can get physical, we’ll find out a whole lot more about the pretenders and contenders for roster spots.

Carroll is a big proponent on open competition and we’ll find out if Cappa is indeed the frontrunner at right guard or a shuffle commences.

Which brings us to another jewel Gutierrez dropped, this time on the Raiders official website. Highlighting the offense’s success hinges on the guys in the trenches, the longtime writers column provided a view into the first five heading into training camp.

“Pencils ready, then? Howze about grizzled vet Kolton Miller at left tackle, Dylan Parham at left guard (with Thayer Munford Jr. nipping at his heels), Powers-Johnson at center, free-agent signee Alex Cappa at right guard and DJ Glaze at right tackle entering training camp?,” Gutierrez wrote.

That left guard spot is of particular interest as it appeared early on it was a fight between incumbents Parham and Jordan Meredith. There’s nary a mention of Meredith and it’s Munford who is slated to duke it out with the much lighter Parham (Munford is 6-foot-6 and 315 pounds, Parham 6-foot-3 and 285 pounds, for reference).

Protecting new starting quarterback Geno Smith and paving the way for prized sixth overall pick in the 2025 draft, running back Ashton Jeanty, are must-dos this coming year and the offensive line will dictate much of the success (and failure).

In turn, Cappa’s arrival will give us a glimpse to a pass-fail scenario with Spytek as roster man.