Jason Cabinda was the second Nittany Lion called up to an NFL team on Tuesday when the Oakland Raiders promoted him to their 53-man roster.

The linebacker originally signed on with the Raiders following the 2018 NFL Draft along with Saeed Blacknall. He spent the first six weeks of the season on Oakland’s practice squad, but will get a shot with the big club after Oakland parted ways with Derrick Johnson.

The Flemington, NJ, native was a standout on James Franklin’s team during his four-year career in Happy Valley, making 286 tackles. Only eight other players made more tackles in their college careers than Cabinda, who also made 17.5 tackles-for-loss and intercepted a pass during his sophomore year.

Beyond the stat sheet, Cabinda was always a leader among Penn State’s defense. He was named a captain ahead of the 2017 season and was always a vocal member of the defense even before being named captain as a senior.

Cabinda joins Grant Haley, who joined Saquon Barkley on the New York Giants’ active roster ahead of their week 7 matchup with the Atlanta Falcons on Monday night.

About the Author

Mikey Mandarino

In the most upsetting turn of events, Mikey graduated from Penn State with a digital & print journalism degree in the spring of 2020. He covered Penn State football and served as an editor for Onward State from 2018 until his graduation. Mikey is from Bedminster, New Jersey, so naturally, he spends lots of time yelling about all the best things his home state has to offer. Mikey also loves to play golf, but he sucks at it because golf is really hard. If you, for some reason, feel compelled to see what Mikey has to say on the internet, follow him on Twitter @Mikey_Mandarino. You can also get in touch with Mikey via his big-boy email address: michael.p.mandarino@gmail.com

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