Ben Heeney played every defensive snap in the Raiders regular season opener, standard procedure for someone playing middle linebacker in this scheme. On Sunday, that percentage was less than 100.
Rookie Cory James played the final nine defensive snaps in Heeney’s place during Sunday’s 35-28 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Head coach Jack Del Rio declined to state whether Heeney was benched for performance – he did so with cornerback Sean Smith last week – and instead absorbed blame for another poor defensive effort.
James is a sixth-round selection from Colorado State, and took some first-unit reps during the preseason.