Las Vegas Raiders DC Patrick Graham Week 2 Update

The Las Vegas Raiders DC Patrick Graham gave his state of the Las Vegas Raiders address for week two.

HENDERSON, Nev.-The Las Vegas Raiders enter the second week of the 2022 NFL schedule with a 0-1 record.  But the sample size was only one game, of a brutal 17-game regular season.

DC Patrick Graham took time after reviewing the film to talk about the state of the Las Vegas Raiders' defense.  

You can watch his entire press conference below, and read the transcript.

Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham

Q: What was your overall assessment of how your defense played?

Coach Graham: “You know, the guys went out there and they fought, played pretty hard. The Chargers, they got a really good team. They made more plays than us. I was proud of the way we fought at the end, just didn't make enough plays and have to improve some techniques here and there. And we'll get back to work tomorrow, well, we got back to work yesterday just watching the tape and learning from that. I take it as a learning lesson in terms of how we got to execute the game plan, just a chance to improve, and that normally happens whether you win or lose on opening day.”

Q: What is your overall assessment of Nate Hobbs’ play? And can you expand on the importance of his versatility?

Coach Graham: “Well, that's gonna come up throughout the year in terms of we value defensive players who can play multiple spots just in terms of being able to move them around and see how we're going to affect the offense. And one thing about Nate, he's going to compete. You saw him at a few positions on Sunday, and he did really well. He competed on that last third down, that second to last third down, that was a pretty good play that third and three right there. Really proud of him right there. He was on their go-to-guy, and he made a play. So, real proud of him there, and he just knows that like everybody else were just trying to improve day to day.”

Q: Has he got exponentially better since you first knew him?

Coach Graham: “I mean, he was a pretty good player last year. I mean, the thing that I've told him just when he was coming out of college, I remember when he's at Illinois, and we obviously evaluated him when I was at New York, and I liked him. I didn't know if he was going to be a starter right away, and I've told him this, because you get to know these guys through the process. Before I even got a chance to coach him, I’m like, ‘Hey, I'm proud of the fact that you turned yourself into a starter so early.’ And so, just to see his growth from his last year at Illinois, last year here with the Raiders and now as we have him, I'm really proud of him. I think he's definitely improved. And the thing is, he's hungry about improving going down the road.”

Q: When you're on the field, how much of your adjustments are the coaches upstairs telling you? How much is it your gut? Can you take us inside that process?

Coach Graham: “I will say this, we call the defense collectively. Been really fortunate to have really good coaching staffs and this year is no different. You know, in terms of the guys up in the box, the guys down the sideline, (they) really don't have any ego about that. The thing is it's a collaborative effort and we try to do what's best for that series, that play, and I'm always asking questions. Ultimately it comes down to me making a decision when I have to make the call, but the adjustments, it’s always collaborative, and I will say even sometimes from the players. That's the beauty of having smart players, guys that can see stuff out there on the field, having veterans, just getting their input and it helps in the game because they're out there on the field.”

Q: Keenan Allen is obviously such a big part of the Chargers’ offense. When he goes out with an injury, how much of an adjustment is that during the game?

“Well, the thing is, the game, it's a contact sport. Every week we have to prepare for the what-ifs, that's part of our job. That's why we're here all these hours. That's why we're here every day working year-round because you might have a plan, but you have to be able to adjust within the game. No different than what's going to happen this week. Something's going to happen this week, and we're going to have to adjust. I mean, you look at the Cardinals, they got a ton of good players. They got a really good coaching staff, and they can attack you running the ball, they can attack you passing the ball, they can attack you with the loose plays. So, something's going to happen within the game that's going to change our game plan to a certain degree, and we have to adjust. Because whatever it is, whether it's on our side, injuries or whatever it may be, or schematically needing to change because they're attacking a weakness, we're going to have to change and adjust, and it's just part of the game.”

Q: When you look at Anthony Averett’s absence in the secondary, how much do you expect for guys like Amik Robertson and Sam Webb to really step up into that void?

Coach Graham: ““Well, again, coach will talk about the injury stuff. But the thing we pride ourselves on and I know these guys, especially in that corner room, it’s next man up, everybody's competing. I mean, they all hopefully see themselves as the guy that could go in and play. So, we'll see how it plays out this week in practice. Josh [McDaniels] will talk about any of the injury stuff, but I just know this, I'm excited about the guys competing. The guys compete on a day-to-day basis. No one's going to be scared to go out there. So, we'll see what happens. I know this, the Cardinals don't care.”

Q: What was your assessment of Maxx Crosby and Chandler Jones performances? And how important is it to get pressure on a player like Kyler Murray?

Coach Graham: “I mean, again, Chan [Chandler] and Maxx, they work hard every day. They go out there and compete on gameday. I mean, these guys have had a lot of success in the league and made some plays on Sunday. When we don't get the ‘W’, I know that's the only thing they care about. That's the only thing I care about. So, the big thing is about affecting the passer and this week we have a challenge, it’s a little bit different, but still the loose plays. You had to deal with that with the Chargers. We're going to have to deal with that this week. And their role, will go through when we're going through the gameplan process what their role is going to be, but we haven't defined that yet. But everybody's going to play a part in containing him because he's so dynamic. I mean, whether it's the design plays from the get out in space, or the loose plays, he's a real problem. He's a real dynamic player. That's why they signed them to that extension. And it's going to be interesting because he's been so successful over the last few years. But we'll get going on that process. We already started that process, but we'll start continuing with it today and for the rest of the week.”

Q: Tashawn Bower was inactive against the Chargers. Is that something that's predicated on the team and personnel groupings that you're playing what went into that?

Coach Graham: " Not getting into any specifics, but just in general, the head coach, the GM, and any input they might ask for me, we try to do what's best for the team that week. So, that's really the bulk of it.”

Q: Can you elaborate on the job the defense did of containing Austin Ekeler?

Coach Graham: “When you're dealing with a running back, just like this week you're dealing with [James] Conner, it starts with setting the edge and then playing with power inside. So, anytime you evaluate the run defense, I always talk about watching from the sideline view. If you can see it from the sideline view where the line of scrimmage is changing, are guys playing with their hands, is the edge set, there is no easy bounce out runs. That's really how you evaluate the run defense. So, this week, you know with the scheme that we're dealing with (with Arizona) and they have a good offensive line. They got tight ends that are willing to block and the fact that you're dealing with the quarterback part of that run game. Watch it from the sideline view; is the edge set? Are there no easy runs on the edge? Is the line of scrimmage getting knocked back? Are guys using their hands? That's really how we really assess it.”

Q: In regard to the penalty on Nate Hobbs, what is the player supposed to do? What do you teach a player when they we know that's going to get called but you're trying to do everything you can to stop the quarterback?

Coach Graham: “Avoid the penalty. That's all I can say there. We teach within the rules and just try to teach that, and some fouls are close, and some fouls aren't, but we just got to avoid the penalty there.”

Q: There is such a long season, is there danger even for coaches to overreact after just one game?

Coach Graham: “No. I mean, you could, but we've been in this business long enough. Every game is a learning opportunity. Obviously, you want to win more than you lose, but it's a chance to learn. And there's lessons learned from last week's game. There'll be lessons learned from this week's game. It's the beginning of the season. You just want to make sure we’re getting our fundamentals. The biggest thing is the race to improve. You know, half of the teams are 1-0 and half of the teams are 0-1, it's a race to improve in this league. Like you said, it's a marathon. And that's all we're going to try to do and just go day by day and just try to improve. But the overreaction, I'm miserable whether we win or lose, so it doesn't matter.”

Q: When Kyler Murray he doesn't have a weapon like DeAndre Hopkins, does make it any different for you in this game in terms of preparation?

Coach Graham: “Well, I mean, the game is about the people. So obviously, if Hopkins was there, it would be a little bit different. But you look at the guys that he has now, [Marquise] Hollywood [Brown]. You talk about the back (James Conner) is pretty dynamic, the tight end [Zach] Ertz. I mean, last time, I went against Arizona, he didn't have Ertz and he's pretty dynamic and even the young kid that just stepped in there, 83, [Greg] Dortch, he made some plays the other day. I know this, with a quarterback like [Kyler] Murray, he knows how to get the ball in the playmaker’s hands. And so, we just got to really focus on making sure we're defending their scheme, make sure we're trying to take away their best players, and then see what happens from there. But obviously anytime a player is out, it changes the game plan, I guess a little bit. But we have to make that adjustment all the time.”

Q: When the offense turns the ball over, how much more do you emphasize it to your defense to try to go out there and get turnovers to get the ball back?

Coach Graham: “Well, turnovers are a big indicator on who's going to win or lose the game. So, I think our focus from day one is we want ball hawks on the defense, so whether it's punching out the ball, high pointing the ball for interceptions, causing tips. That's a main focus. I mean, most defenses in the league would say that. Each week we try to emphasize it, each week we try to emphasize the targets and when we don't get the results you don't want to overreact, to steal your term there, but we got to just go back to the drawing board, just keep working on fundamentals and keep working at it. But we're always focused on as a defense, trying to get the ball away from the offense. The game was about the ball. So, if you could get the ball, that's a good thing.”

The Las Vegas Raiders (0-1) kick off at home in Allegiant Stadium on Sunday, facing the Arizona Cardinals (0-1) at 1:25 PM PT.

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