Raiders' Defense Aiming to Play Freely in Season Opener

The Las Vegas Raiders hit the road to face the Los Angeles Chargers Sunday. Coach Antonio Pierce and Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham plan to let the defense play fast and physical.

Las Vegas Raiders DE Janarius Robinson, DE Tyree Wilson, and DT John Jenkins / Darrell Craig Harris, Sports Illustrated

The Las Vegas Raiders have waited all summer to prove doubters wrong. Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers is the Raiders’ first chance to do so. Coach Antonio Pierce and Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham guided the Raiders' defense to the top of the league in numerous statistical categories over the final nine games of last season. The Raiders potentially have one of the best defenses in the National Football League this season. 

Still, they must remain cautious against a Chargers team with many unknowns entering the season, as the Chargers have many new faces and a new coaching staff. Raiders defensive lineman Christian Wilkins said the defense plans to enter the game against the Chargers on alert for anything and everything. 

"Yeah, definitely,” Wilkins said. “New staff, new team, everything like that. But I will say the coaches have done a good job trying to put stuff in front of us and give us the looks they think we will see. Just everybody's working hard. We have to understand that, and the first game is always weird. You don't know what teams are and who they really are, so you kind of have an idea maybe, but you just have to be willing to adjust as the game goes on." 

Wilkins is grateful that Coach Pierce and Graham know how to play to the defense’s strengths by not bogging them down with a complex game plan early in the season. Coach Pierce and Wilkins believe this will allow the players to play fast and freely on Sunday against the Chargers, as they will not be weighed down mentally. Coach Pierce plans to have the defense and the team mentally and physically ready to play a talented Chargers team.

“I definitely love that,” Wilkins said. “It's kind of like just getting us ready, making sure we're good mentally, and we just play fast and fly around. Because again, you don't really know what you're going to see in a lot of different things. So, as long as you play fast, fly around, and just do it together as a team, as a unit, on both offense and defense, you should be in a good spot."

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