The Oakland Raiders are set to start training camp on Thursday and the star of their defense will be absent, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. Defensive end Khalil Mack will begin a holdout on Thursday, which isn't really much of a surprise as he has stayed away from the team most of the offseason.

Mack is looking for a contract that will make him one of the highest paid players in the league, and according to John Middlekauff of The Athletic, the two sides aren't anywhere close to deal.

“I’ve heard from multiple people in the last four or five days [on] the Khalil Mack situation,” Middlekauff said. “I’ve heard they’re not close, it’s not close at all, he ain’t going to be at training camp unless they raise their offer significantly… I would get ready for an ugly situation.”

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Aaron Donald of the Los Angeles Rams is also not reporting to camp, and the two are probably looking for very similar deals to become the highest paid defenders in the NFL.

Mack is the heart and soul of the Raiders' defense, and if the holdout continues into the season, the team is going to be missing a huge part of their defense.

The Raiders also have a completely new defensive system that they need Mack to learn, as the players not at training camp are in danger of falling behind. Mack missing camp is bad for both sides; the next question is how long this will go on for.