Training camp just started, but teams are already starting to tinker with their rosters. Wide receiver D.J. Turner has been in the NFL since 2021, but has only ever played for the Las Vegas Raiders.
With a new coaching staff coming in, they decided against bringing him back. Turner has had to wait around in free agency all offseason, but finally has a new team. The Houston Texans announced that they’ve signed the veteran wide receiver.
Turner was an undrafted free agent signing of the Raiders in 2021. He made a name for himself by being a strong special teams contributor. He did have one season in 2024 when he had a chance to have a bigger role on the offense.
He caught 16 passes for 158 yards that season, which is the only season he had any offensive stats. The Texans are one of the top teams in the AFC, so making the roster won’t be easy. He’ll have to prove that he can still be an impact player on special teams. That will be his best chance at making the team. Turner is already 29, so it’s unlikely he’ll develop into a dependable wide receiver, but there are other ways for him to be a valuable player.
Klint Kubiak Creating Collaborative Environment
The Raiders underwent yet another head coaching change this offseason. This time, Klint Kubiak was given the keys to the team.
He should have a much longer runway than Pete Carroll or Antonio Pierce had. Kubiak has had a lot of individual success and called offensive plays for the Super Bowl-winning Seattle Seahawks last season.
He could easily come into Las Vegas and start telling everybody how to do their jobs. However, he is trying to foster a much more collaborative environment.
“It’s a ‘we’ thing,” Kubiak told reporters. “Our coaching staff is making sure that we’re on our stuff so that we’re the best versions of ourselves for these players. So we can be great teachers and give these guys the information they need to have and put them through the stresses that we believe they’ll see in the game so that the game is not as hard as practice.”
Brighter Days Ahead for Raiders?
Turner spent five years with the Raiders and played for five different head coaches. No team is going to have success if they keep cycling through head coaches at that rate.
The hope is that Kubiak is finally the long-term answer. He’s very different than the last several coaches. Jon Gruden was an offensive guy like Kubiak, but their personalities couldn’t be more different. McDaniels and Kubiak might seem similar at first glance, but the former’s biggest problem is that he was a bad collaborator, which isn’t a problem for the latter.
Pierce just didn’t have any experience and was in over his head. The game simply passed Carroll by. Kubiak is young, creative and hungry to succeed. If he can’t break the Raiders’ bad luck at head coach, they may never find the right one.
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