EXCLUSIVE: Raiders' LB Tommy Eichenberg from the Locker Room Steelers Week

Las Vegas Raiders LB Tommy "FREAKING" Eichenberg spoke exclusively from the locker room ahead of the Pittsburgh Steelers coming to Allegiant Stadium on Sunday.

Las Vegas Raiders LB Tommy Eichenberg / Darrell Craig Harris, Sports Illustrated

HENDERSON, Nev. — The Las Vegas Raiders (2-3), despite Davante Adams’ drama, are moving forward as they prepare to host the Pittsburgh Steelers (3-2) on Sunday.

The team is moving forward with Aidan O’Connell as the QB1, and the team is moving forward with the intent of getting rid of the bad taste in their mouth from the debacle in Denver.

Raider Nation’s LB Tommy "Freaking" Eichenberg spoke this week from the locker room, and you can watch that in its entirety below:

Below is a transcript of Pierce’s entire press conference on Friday:

Q: How do you feel like this week of practice has gone? Have you been pleased with it?

Coach Pierce: "It was. I think it was a professional practice throughout, obviously okay, we play pro football, but just it was clean, the attention to detail was there. The focus was there. The mindset was there. The intent was there, things that we asked for throughout the week was there. Real clean. Pleased where we're at as of today."

Q: Is it a fundamental type thing? Is the feel for this week of practice, like you say, get back to just the fundamentals?

Coach Pierce: "Training camp. It's training camp, man. Back to square one, technique, fundamentals, pad level, hand placement, eyes in the right place. Tackling is going to be at a premium, and you'll need a lot of guys to tackle. And I think on the other side of ball, getting off double teams, staying together, staying connected and taking care of the football."

Q: You mentioned tackling. How do you work on that, more live tackling?

Coach Pierce: "No, you can't go live at this point. A lot of bags. It's more just getting yourself in a football position, right? Being square, not too many times are you in a perfect football position, but being in the best position you can and then using the right shoulder, right foot, and more importantly, grab cloth. You see it around the NFL, everybody's punching at the ball, and it's more missed tackles, not just us, everybody, but stop punching at the ball and tackle."

Q: Every week is physical in the NFL, but do you expect this to be one of the most physical games on the schedule?

Coach Pierce: "No, Baltimore was physical. So I’ll have to tell you that on Monday, but we expect it. That's the style of football they play. That's the style of football we want to represent as well. So, when you look at the team, they got off to a fast start and then, okay what do they get back to when you've had two losses? Probably get back to who they are, and that's being a physical team."

Q: Any updates on Jackson Powers-Johnson and Jakobi Meyers?

Coach Pierce: "Yeah, they'll practice today." Q: You had a couple other starters get back to practice this week that have missed a stretch of games there, Thayer Munford Jr. and Divine Deablo. Do you have confidence they'll be able to get back on the field? Coach Pierce: "Yeah, I think so. I think both are trending in that direction."  

Q: What have you guys missed with Divine Diablo not being out there?

Coach Pierce: "I mean, it’s his fourth year starting and playing and he's getting better, he's been getting better each and every week. And then you're throwing out younger players, Luke Masterson at first, and then Tommy [Eichenberg]. But obviously, you get somebody like Spill [Robert Spillane], they're comfortable with one another. I said that back in training camp, when you have continuity and playing, and you got a feeling for your guy next to you, your fellow linebacker, that makes it a lot easier. And then, also, he takes a little bit off a Spill, right? Just from a vocal standpoint, a mental standpoint, you don't have to worry about telling him what to do like you would do with a rookie. So I think all that helps. And like I said, [Divine] Diablo, we're excited to get him back. He's healthy, running around, excited to see him play."

Q: What do you want and maybe need to see from Aidan O'Connell this week?

Coach Pierce: "Just good quarterback play. First and foremost, take care of the football. Take care of the football. No turnovers, no turnovers, no turnovers."

Q: Tommy Eichenberg was telling me in the locker room yesterday, obviously your personalities are different, but you play the same and how he appreciates Patrick Graham, but your input to him carries a lot of weight. Can you talk about your relationship with him, please?

Coach Pierce: "Yeah, I think being biased with all the linebackers. I find my way to get to them throughout the week, if it's in the building, might be on the field, might be in the cafeteria, and just talk one, life, and then more importantly, football and just linebacker play. I always say, it's got to look right, it's got to sound right, you got to talk right. And I think for a lot of players, as they get in the league, they think they know it all. And not to say that Mike Caldwell is not doing his job, he's doing an excellent job. But I think just when you hear from your head coach, and obviously playing that position, I think it means a little bit more. But also, I want them to understand that I was in this position. I started as a rookie, played as a rookie, so there were times that I felt lost or like, ‘Man, why isit not coming as easy? Why am I struggling with certain things?’ And just to kind of put them at ease, and that's with Tommy [Eichenberg]. But with all the backers, I've always tried to find something throughout the week that I can hit them on, even with Spill [Robert Spillane]. I go to Spill every game before the game and pregame warmups, and I tell him he's the baddest SOB on the field today. He needs to be the best linebacker on the field, and he's done that now for five games."

Q: What can you say to some of the intangibles about players like Jonah Laulu and Matthew Butler that may need to step into bigger roles at defensive tackle this week?

Coach Pierce: "Yeah, I think they both, especially Jonah [Laulu], he's gotten more and more reps each and every week. You'll see that again this week, we’ve got some injuries there with Christian [Wilkins]. And I think Matthew Butler has done an outstanding job. He was on the practice squad. He's been active throughout his career here, and this is a great opportunity for him going forward to step up. Can't replace Christian Wilkins, right? But you can be yourself and be the best version of yourself, and that's all we're going to ask them to do. Just do their job. I asked them this week, just do right. Just do right. Don't go outside the box. Don't be somebody else. Don't try to make that game winning play or that game winning tackle. Just keep them linemen off our linebackers. Get some knock back and use your hands."  

Q: Do you think Zamir White might have a chance to get back out there?

Coach Pierce: "We'll see. He's practicing today."

Q: At some point, DJ Glaze is going to be facing TJ Watt on Sunday. How much has going against Maxx Crosby prepared him for that?

Coach Pierce: "Ying and yang right there, right? I mean, like wow. If you could have a better person to go against in each and every practice, and we always start off practice with competition. So like today, Maxx [Crosby] is practicing, so he'll get some good reps there versus Maxx. But T.J. [Watt] is a is a very, very intriguing player when you watch him, because he can drop, doesn't play every snap like Maxx, but he's very effective. And for some reason, when the game is on the line on third down or in the red zone, man you better know where 90 is. And hopefully we got enough hands and eyes on him at all times."

Q: They also have Cam Heyward coming to town. So, how much of a challenge is this offensive line going to face on Sunday with those guys?

Coach Pierce: "Yeah, I mean you're talking about one of the best probably of all time inside and just a good system pro. I mean, he's a badass. I just remember two years ago him just pretty much tearing our game apart. We played up there in Pittsburgh I think it was Christmas Eve. But a really good player, physical. I mean, it starts with him. When he's in the game, it's difficult to run the ball especially at him. You've got to find ways to get big boy moving there, but I think our guys are up for the challenge, right? We've got two young guards there with Dylan [Parham] and Jackson [Powers-Johnson]. I know Jackson, I kind of got Jackson going a little bit. He wears that five-eight. I said, 'Man, it's a good week for five-eight to play really well,' so that's good."

Q: As a guy that when you played, you were kind of known as a tackling machine anyway, so now in the next level as a coach, how frustrating is it for you to see the issues with tackling not only here, but league-wide?

Coach Pierce: "Yeah, and I'm going to go back to it, I think we're working so much, everybody, talking about this punch, right? When I played, there was two guys that punched at the ball very well and still made tackles, [Charles] Peanut Tillman and Charles Woodson. But even in my career when I played, you were always taught to bite the ball, knock the ball off of the receiver or the running back. And to be honest, I thought we did a good job going in training camp, really working on those fundamentals, but they started to creep up. Saw a little bit of it in preseason. Okay, it's preseason, when we get season guys will get better, but it has been an issue for us. And again this week, that was the first two things we did in every period, was tackling and ball security. But at the end of the day I always say tackling is a want to. Either you want to do it or you don't. You want to get dirty or you don't. You want to have the aches and pains or you don't, and we've just got to have that mindset that we know we need to take some Advil before and after the game in this one because it's going to hurt."

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