ANTONIO PIERCE SAYS "TRE TUCKER" NEXT BREAKOUT PLAYER FOR RAIDERS; TALKS DARNAY HOLMES & MORE

ready roll guys anonio just curious about Brock Bowers you we hav't see him out there in practice for a few weeks miss a couple preseason games is he are you guys still pretty comfortable that he's going to be able to be out there on Sunday against Char yeah I feel really good about that to be honest just again I'm GNA go back to protecting a young guy that sometimes you get in the league you you gota be smart sometime you got to protect them for themselves so that's all this coach you're known for having a pretty good PO on the team how do you how would you assess how the team feels right now are you talking physically mentally emotionally all the all okay good I think uh physically we're there these guys had a lot especially for our vets they've had quite a few days off now we've gotten after the last few days we had pads on yesterday pretty good day in pads we'll be smart because we're getting close to 10 days from game day um but I think physically we're pretty good pretty I think we'll be about as healthy as you could be for a team going to week one um mentally I think you know these guys still highly motivated dialed into what we're doing I think our coordinator done a really good job throughout otaa many camping in obviously training camp in preseason is just kind of spoon feeding our guys right getting them comfortable building confidence building trust within the scheme and Concepts that we're running and allowing guys to make plays and now that'll start to you know dial up even a little bit more and I think emotionally man you got a guy you got a bunch of guys that's highly motivated when to go out there and play and put some good product on the field T I know you've uh you've been part of putting a team together as an assistant coach but as the head coach now having looked at the the big picture and the math of it all and how it all those puzzle pieces fit how was that process for you it was good I mean you know Tesco again a lot of experience there done last 11 plus years another organization but I think just sitting here with him you know JoJo champ and just kind of seeing the big picture things not always use the word Band-Aid just not sitting there pluging things and just really looking at the growth and development of our team and doing what's best for the Raiders not just now but the immediate future right so we know that we got to you know it's a win down business but I think it's also important when you look at our team you see a lot of youthful energetic players there that have a lot of potential it's up to our coaches to unlock that and those players to keep going forward but it was really easy and pretty Ste seamless with Tesco to be honest with you um and I think to the players credit you know they went out there and competed so I mean you guys all saw what we saw in the preon and those guys were rewarded by being on the roster talk about youthful guys you know with a lot of potential Mar G can you just as a former NFL linebacker you evaluate his play style what advice do you give him also being an undrafted linebacker yeah no listen when he came in the door day one it was like wow this it's pretty sucker here you know he looks good you saw the movement with him in college from Florida State North Carolina but there was always like man there's more to him and I think the best thing that happened for him was that last game he went out there and played 90 plus snaps 70 plus Home Defense another 15 or so on special teams and all you see all you saw throughout the game and we've been seen all preseason but a guy just get better and better but more importantly somebody that was playing his hard out and it meant something to him even that last play where the ners are throwing the ball around if you look at it I he's on the ground three times tackling people and when the ball ends up at the two yard line he's right there finishing it so I thought he did an excellent job he's put himself in position not just a linebacker but on special teams to be one of the core guys for us there's still some devel there at the linebacker position that you will take place over the course of the season but he gives us a lot of flexibility because of what he's able to do both on the line scrimmage offline off the ball linebacker and special te Antonio you guys signed Dar Holmes yesterday I know you used to play for Patrick Ram with the Giants what did you see from him that made you guys want to bring him in well actually you go further than that I've known darn since he was 13 coached him on on 17 he's a freshman so know his father know his family well followed him throughout his career spoke to him throughout his colge process so Patrick was very familiar with him and you know you look through that 53 man roster I know everybody saw our roster like okay you're all said and done but you know it's always about getting better and that was a great opportunity you know we had Nate Hobs here at the star nickel position and darn is played a lot of football he's been productive as well so that gives his depth really good special teams player and a good Pro those guys you de signed this week how much ramp up time do you think they need they going to be effective for you out there on Sunday yeah I think that's all still to be seen and watched I guess in practice they would be a good opportunity to go out there and see them it'll be dialed back a little bit but more important we got to get them up the speed with just our steam how we do things here as a Raider um but they have skill sets that obviously you know when you make claims you see something right I don't think we make claims to put guys on the bench so obviously we see something where they can help us when is it is it immediate future is it week one week four I don't know we're not going to rush them out there and do it because it's going to look bad on us and them but I think it's more important just to get them up to speed of how we do things you look at darn his alignment his snap counts at various positions he's played all over the field obviously does that kind of seamlessly fit into what you're looking for from that backup cornerback yeah position Flex I mean that's key for us right really the only guy we got that can go inside outside or Outside Inside is Nate hops so when you can add another player like that Isaiah palal does as well from sa position you see him as a little bit at the ni position you seen that obviously in the preseason so just the more flexibility you can get the better it is for our team makes us a better overall unit Thomas Harper was a guy that also played all over field at Notre Dame he also played for Al Goldman who kind of runs an NFL defense there in South Ben what kind of flexibility does he bring to the D yeah I like his play style what I saw in feeling was a guy with burst aggressiveness kind of controling the back end as a young player watched him in college you just saw a guy each and every week get better in the preseason and then you know again whatever you can do to get your you know keep building depth in every room especially in the secondary for us uh is critical but he does have a skill set to play both safety and Lal position the biggest challenge as a coach there his two weeks and three games um too much time overthinking it trying to throw the whole Playbook and you know creating scenarios and chasing ghosts chasing waterfalls is like I tell our guys but that won't be the case for us less is more last year when you um took over there are some players who really took a step up like I was thinking of Cs for example I'm wondering this year do you have an eye on a player who you think is just going to take that extra leag that um probably didn't you know start off too well last year yeah I don't want to set the stage too too too high for him but I think he's already done it Trey Tu I think we saw it in the preseason we seen it we saw it in OTAs mini camp it just just been steady Edy and then he got in the preseason and he did exactly what we've been seeing in practice and if he can continue that that that's that's going to help us big time because I mean obviously he can run by a lot of corners and safeties in this league and that's we know we're going to get with Devonte and Brock and Big Mike and Jobe we know we're going to get with the rest of our skill players but I think man when you got a guy that can just you know Fort you and create those explosive plays that makes those DBS back up a little bit more you you going to play him a little differently than you play everybody else he also showed in uh special teams that he can return but now you also have Tyreek so does that how does that Dynamic kind of work just two's good one is cool two is better you know so you know listen I mean to be honest with Mall's role on offense is still to be determined but we know what he can do we all seen that and he did that even as Ki off Turner so I think he's going to be a really good job our staff is doing a really good job especially Tom McMahon of finding the right spot to put these gentlemen in and we got to be smart right Trey Tucker is are one of our starting receivers so mallister has a role I don't know is it what this guy this week is it that guy is it the hot hand but you know I think both guys have done an outstanding job now in the return game I think we see that both as pun returners and mallister P return and you've praised uh gardeners I think you said personality free spirit ever since the first moment he came in here but now you've gotten more time to know him over the full summer anything surpris you about him or or just what stands out about getting to know him a little yeah he's a football jum you know we always talk about Max and Christi about being the first guys in the building but he he's not too far behind and he stays late and he's done a lot of things without a lot of hype and things that we talk about throughout the building that's that's starting to show up a little bit and I think our team is really taking a notice of that and obviously since we need him starting quarterback he's kind of taking on that role with our skill position players in our line it's been good to see the do talks about that time between games players have a have a couple days off for the first time really in training camp I guess what do you want from them do you want them to get away from football you to keep focusing on it I guess what is your message to them well our vets are kind of used to like I said they just had four days off they didn't play in the game so you go back that's Friday Saturday Sunday come in Monday for a little bit so they had four days there practice three days another four days off like I said we should be fresh what I expect for them is what we talk about 10 days before the game and this is an important game for us we want to get out to a fast start we're on the road it's a divisional fo um we can take time off later down the road not right now so they'll be in the build I expect is there still a window open for Jackson po Johnson to get on the field on Sunday against the Chargers I think that's still be to say four practices or so five so got give the football sh football sh what have you seen from him powerful powerful every day we saw in the draft everything day we saw when we Scout him and looking at him on film he's powerful strong tough um good personality fits that room kind of lighting that room up it's good to see that part I think he's coming out of his shell even more you know it's hard being difficult when you're not around your teammates you're not there in the trenches with them but having them at practice has been a plus I mean we talked about the depth at our old line I I thought a weakness last year for us I think it's a straight for us feel really good about the guys that's backing up some of our stars captains and who are they yeah we haveen named captains that'll be next one throughout the course of the preseason you guys did a lot of passing as you're working on the the quarterbacks and who was going to be that but what about the running backs and ramping them up getting them ready for the charges is that kind of an emphasis right now yeah that's why we had pads on yesterday just kind of get after a little bit again when you got a quarterback battle kind of T you know it makes it tough to do other things but I thought we had we picked and choose our days in training camp but that's going to be important part of our game not that because AP likes running the ball no because running the ball is effective for as well and it opens up play pass and everything for wide receivers in the offense so but I like what we've been seeing with our running backs I think zamir has his legs underneath them big powerful man bigger than he was last year more explosive faster it looks like and then you know Alex Madison Dylan all those guys air they've all kind of got a role within offense but to be honest you know early Downs a lot of number three that's what I expect to see you guys shuffled that defensive tackle a little bit signing jonu from the Colts and releasing Byron Young decision to kind of add in from the close what you guys see yeah Jonah was here at our local pro day and I liked it little disappointed we didn't get a chance to draft him um but you watch you know you just look at the your roster you look at everybody else you look at the the waiver wire and you make a decision and we felt you know Jon get some more depth and some you know a little bit more juice at the D line coach what are you expecting from Devon Diablo and Robert Spain this season yeah love love linebackers right love linebackers the same thing man I thought last year big growth with those two guys career year for both players right and they got to take it up to another notch at the end of the day our defense runs through our linebackers I know a lot of talk is about Max Crosby and our d line but listen the brains of the operation is Robert Spain okay and Diablo now in year four playing linebacker looks like a linebacker moves like a linebacker talks like a linebacker and he understands this is a big year for him right everybody's expecting big things for him but the good part about it they don't have to do it by themselves you they got a good front in front of them the calls come in they communicate what I love to see by them two guys is just their ownership now like it's it's clearcut about who's running the show on our defense and it's our linebackers coach uh to that point you know Spain had a career high in interceptions last year just seemed like that was an area his game took a step forward why do you think that is and are you expecting more of the same this season little bias comment here I was his linebacker coach too no but literally that was one of the things that we talked about when we signed him was working on it and really all offseason myself him and the wrest of linebackers we worked on a lot of being Twitchy Vision on the quarterback just not wasting steps being more efficient in our movement and I think that's what you really saw from spill he sees he believes that he runs the line and two of those interception came on just that right see him believe in the run the line both sign these quarterbacks there's a little hitch stke there and if you can catch him you can make a play but I think he really put an emphasis on that because he wanted to be a complete linebacker know he's a run stop guy he's a early down guy he didn't like that I didn't like that for him either and that something we worked on the entire offseason and credit to him and show up in the games what's the next up for him repeat consistency just like our team guys good thank you