By admin 
One of the surprise stars of Raiders training camp has been cornerback Hezekiah Masses. He has shot up the depth chart and continually impressed his teammates.
Read more Tennessee Titans Dealing With Multiple Injuries Ahead of Preseason Opener Thursday
But there is a concern surrounding his size. Masses was the lightest cornerback at the combine, weighing in at 179 pounds.
Las Vegas selected Masses in the fifth round of the 2026 NFL Draft. Despite that low draft capital, Masses is making a push for a starting spot on the Raiders defense.
Last season at Cal, Masses led the country with 18 passes defended. The Raiders sorely need corners that can make a play on the ball, as Las Vegas ranked 31st in defended passes last season. Masses could be part of an answer to an obvious problem.
But will Masses be good enough at everything else to justify playing? Ted Nguyen of The Athletic recently talked about Masses and what could prevent him from being a starter.
“You have to have (defensive backs) that tackle,” Nguyen said on the Just Win Pod. “So even though we are hearing Hezekiah Masses make all these plays in camp, if he goes into these preseason games and he’s getting run over, or he can’t finish tackles, he’s going to go way down in the pecking order.”
Read more George Pickens Receives Strong Message From Cowboys Following Major Decision
Masses was credited with 19 tackles in the run game last season at Cal. But he missed five tackles as well. His missed tackle rate of 20.8 percent was worse than the national average for cornerbacks in college football, according to Pro Football Focus.
Masses played his first three seasons of college football at Florida International. Even at a lower level, he still missed 20 percent of his tackles in the run game over those three seasons as a Panther.
Ultimately, Masses was a fifth-round pick for a reason. But he will need to show improvement in the run game to be an every-down contributor.
How Masses fits into the Raiders defense
Even if he struggles to stop the run, Masses can still make an impact for the Raiders. When the Raiders defense has forced the offense into an obvious passing situation, Masses should be on the field. Any third-down packages or two-minute drills could see the rookie on the field.
But like most of this Raiders roster, Masses doesn’t need to be good right now. This organization is building for the future. If Masses can improve his run-stopping ability by putting on weight or just becoming a better tackler, he’ll be a much more valuable player.
Read more College Football’s Top 25 Offensive Lines for 2026
If that happens in 2027 instead of 2026, the Raiders will take it.
Copyright 2026 Athlon Sports. All rights reserved.
This story was originally published August 12, 2026 at 6:00 AM.