Ameer Abdullah Ready for 2022 Las Vegas Raiders Season
HENDERSON, Nev.-The Las Vegas Raiders' Josh McDaniels kept an astonishing six running backs for the 2022 roster.
After a long and distinguished career, many thought that Ameer Abdullah would struggle to make that roster, and their doubts proved to be wrong.
Abdullah discussed camp, expectations, and much more.
You can watch the entire press conference below, and read the transcript:
Running Back Ameer Abdullah
Q: Is there like a switch that flips a little bit just from a training camp mode to regular season?
Abdullah: “No, I think it's about really just doubling down on the fundamentals that you’ve learned up to this point and not going too far off the rails of anything that you've been practicing. A lot of people want to try to rise to the occasion as opposed to falling back in your training. And I think I'd say right now is just focus on the fundamentals, that’s what wins football games.”
Q: When you look at a 53-man roster and see six running backs, what does that tell you about the depth of that room when you look around and see all the talent?
Abdullah: “For one, everyone in that room is a competitor. Everyone takes their job seriously. It’s tough to stay around in this league, and like you said, most rooms don’t carry six (running) backs like we did this year. And I think it's a testament to the guys who came in every single day, worked to the best of their ability, made corrections every single day. It's tough to get back to 100 percent every single day when you're in training camp for I don't know how many weeks, and guys really bought in and made the necessary sacrifices to put themselves in the best situation to make the team.”
Q: When there's that much talent and that many bodies in that room, how do you kind of mentally prepare yourself for what the role is going to be?
Abdullah: “Just take every day as it is. You can't look too far future.”
Q: When you look around this roster, what are the strengths of it? What do you feel about the talent level?
Abdullah: “Honestly, I mean, I think every team is good. I think we got a good roster, but so does the other 31 teams right now. Everyone's kind of at the bottom of the mountain right now I would say. I think what makes us a good team right now is, like I said earlier, staying with the fundamentals because this is the National Football League, you got stars everywhere, you got speed everywhere, you got strength everywhere. It's not much that separates any one team, other than a team that is not going to get bored with doing the right things over and over again. He can get monotonous, but those are the little things that really creates a good team.”
Q: It feels like fundamentals was really emphasized this year. Do you feel like it's taken effect and taken hold with you guys in terms of doing the right thing rep after rep, day after day?
Abdullah: “Yeah, but I like to kind of live by every day as a new season. Every day, like even when you’ve done something well yesterday, but that doesn't mean the next day you're good to slack off because you did something well the day before. I think a lot of guys are starting to get that attention to detail and sense of urgency that this is a every single day thing and if you don't love it, you are going to have a hard time playing this game.”
Q: What makes this locker room different than what you've seen from other teams you have been on?
Abdullah: “I think everyone just complements one another really well, whether that's on the field skill set wise but also personality wise. And then we got the guys who are more vocal leaders, we got the guys who are more lead by example, and we got the guys who are just kind of sponges in a sense where they're looking for someone to kind of get them going. And everyone kind of has their place that I think is the right place. So, I think right now we have a good mix of guys who are doing the right things to make sure everyone's productive around them.”
Q: You also got to have the vocal guys that are sort of lighthearted and keep everyone happy. Who are those guys?
Abdullah: “Definitely Brandon Bolden. Brandon is a guy who's played for 2,000 years now. He saw Jim Brown and all the guys. (laughter) He's going to kill me for saying that. But he’s a guy who always keeps it light because he's been in the system offensively for, I want to say like nine years now. So, it isn't much that he hasn't seen. If someone does make a mistake, he'll be like, ‘Man, I remember back in 2007 when I was playing whatever team, this happened to me too. This is something that I learned from that, that you can do now moving forward.’ He kind of keeps light, where it's like, you know what, everyone makes mistakes, but the intention is what’s most important, trying to do your job the right way. He's an excellent leader to have in that room right now.”
Q: How does Tekken figure into your touchdown celebration?
Abdullah: “Man, I was a huge Sega Dreamcast fan, so I used to play Crazy Taxi. I used to play Tekken a lot. And I could never pronounce this word, which is capoeira, it’s a Brazilian fighting style. Eddy [Gordo] was my favorite fighter in the game because he kind of takes like a breakdancing style but then he will hit you with the low sweeping kick and then he’ll come with a round house finisher. Personally, I've always been doing like martial arts for quite a while now. I think it's wonderful for your hips, wonderful for your core if you guys don't want to just sit there doing 1,000 crunches, go outside and goes just throw like 25 to 50 sidekicks, your obliques are going to be on fire and it keeps the pelvic floor nice and keeps the spine decompressed, so that's my TED Talk.”
Q: When you were back in Nebraska, you talked about the legacy of the Cornhuskers, the tradition and all the Championships. You talked about your honor to play for that legacy, now you come to arguably one of the best legacies in the National Football League. Was the response the same when you came in and saw the legacy of the Raiders?
Abdullah: “Definitely. I would say it starts with the fan base. I mean, the fan base is going to travel no matter where you are, and they are going to support you for sure. They really live and die Raider football, just like they did in Nebraska. So right off the bat when I signed here, you get outpouring of the fans and everyone supporting you. People that you didn't even realize we're still rooting for you. This is my ninth year in the league, and I got people coming out the woodworks saying like, ‘Man, I’m a Husker fan and a Raiders fan. This is doubling down. this is great.’
So, I'm honored to play for an organization such as the Raiders that has such prestigious history. I actually was a Raiders fan and an Eagles fan growing up because my older brother loved Charles Woodson. So, full circle moment for me, and my family gets to come to this first game, so it will be special.”
Q: What martial arts did you train?
Abdullah: “I did jiu-jitsu. I've done Tai Chi, kind of bouncing back and forth. I do a lot of kickboxing now. Obviously, the UFC presence here and you’ve got a lot of trainers here that can teach you how to land. Everything is a counter, you're never actually attacking, you're just countering the momentum of what someone else is throwing. And I think it's helpful for life, but definitely in football.”
Q: Have you ever made it to the UFC Performance Institute?
Abdullah: “No, I haven't. I sparred with a kid two years ago, who was like 17, and he kicked my butt. We were on the ground and 45 seconds I was ready to tap out because that's a completely different endurance, but maybe one day.”
Q: You're very patient runner. Do you think that's a competitive advantage in your game?
Abdullah: “I would like to think so. That was very great praise. I appreciate that film critique that you just gave on me. I've always strived to be someone that reads the defense before the play even starts to get a little bit of knowledge of where this may go, and that always kind of gives you an advantage of like if it does read out exactly how you pre-meditated the play then perfect, you can look like you're hitting it right on time. But it's all about the IQ and understanding defensive structure. And I think that's something as well that we do here with the Raiders and our coaching staff, making sure the players understand what they're going against is huge because we're going to see a lot of different defenses. We're going to see a lot of different players who play differently and if you don't know what you're going up against, you are kind of going at it half blind.”
Q: When you look at the guys in that running back room, a lot of your skill sets are vastly different in what you do on the field, and in your personalities. What do you think differentiates yourself from the rest of the room?
Abdullah: “Experience. We got a lot of young guys. Other than Brandon [Bolden], I’m the second oldest in the room. So, experience is number one. A guy who's played a lot of ball who understands big moments, understands situational football, and then also just a spark. I feel like if I catch the ball, that's when I’m at my best after I have the ball in my hands. So, guys who can create those shorter drives where you don’t have to go first, second and third (down). You can go first to first, second to first. I think we have a combination of guys on our team who can do that, and I think I fit right in with that pod of people.”
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