Las Vegas Raiders DC Patrick Graham Ready for the Challenge

Very little has been made of Josh McDaniels selecting Patrick Graham to be his DC, but insiders know that Graham is ready for the challenge.

HENDERSON, Nev.-Josh McDaniels has done a masterful job since taking over as the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.

McDaniels only had 37 players under contract when he arrived and needed entirely new staff.  With all of the new players, and staff added, one significant move that has garnered little attention was the hiring of Patrick Graham as his DC.

Grham is detail oriented, a superb teacher, and a great addition for Silver and Black.  He has this once feared Raiders defense trending in the right direction and he spoke ahead of the opener.

You can watch his entire interview below, and read the transcript:

Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham

Q: How much of last year's tape do you look at to prepare for this year?

Coach Graham: "Oh, yeah, a lot. Especially because they didn't see a lot of snaps in the preseason there as a full group. You take a look at it, try to look up whether it's tendencies, but really right now for the first game, I mean who knows what's going to happen. So, it's really just getting familiar with the players again. And fortunately, we played them last year when I was with the Giants, so got a chance - it didn't go well, but we played them and got to see a lot of players. [Keenan] Allen didn't play, so they weren't working at full capacity. But it's a great opportunity to watch 17, 18 games, whatever it is, to get familiar with the players again."

Q: The Chargers are a team that has an aggressive coach, especially when it comes to fourth downs. Do you plan accordingly for that? Like, it's not just a three-down situation? It might be a four-down situation?

Coach Graham: "Absolutely. I mean, we've got to look at everything, and you try to find the pattern of the coaches, whether it's the offensive coordinator or the head coach, and you've got to study that stuff and you have to be prepared for it. Especially game one, you have to be prepared for everything. So, I would say yes."

Q: With a quarterback like Justin [Herbert] that can put the ball anywhere on the field, how much in a week like that do you have to keep emphasizing with the defensive backs to stay disciplined when he starts to scramble?

Coach Graham: "He's such an impressive quarterback back there in the pocket and then on top of that having the athletic ability and also have the athletic ability and be able to have the vision down the field. So, that's probably the first thing you talk about because there's explosive plays that are planned and explosive plays that are off schedule. I mean, you just got to keep emphasizing it. But he has plenty of stuff that's not off schedule that he's making plays. But we're always focused on the big plays, you start there, how are they getting the ball down the field. So really the emphasis remains the same, defend the deep part of the field and the role the defensive backs have on that and also the pass rushers, they have a job with that too. You let him out of the pocket, now that's extra time to go down the field. Everybody has a role. That's the unique thing about defense in my opinion. There's a lot of grass behind us and we have to find a way to defend it, and everybody has a role, whether it's in the run, the pass. Even the deep ball, the D-line has a role in that, too, you've got to keep him in the pocket."

Q: What does the revamped cornerback room have to do this season for it to be considered a success?

Coach Graham: "We've got to win. That's how we judge success around here - win. That's the most important thing. Thankfully, we've got our first game this week and we got to go out there and compete and try to win this game. It started a long time ago in the spring and now we're in the first week of the season and preparing. How we look at it, we look at we got to win Thursday, then we've got to win on Friday, then we've got to win on Saturday. So, it goes back to the preparation and the readiness and getting ready because what we do on that practice field is the closest thing to the game. We always talk about practice; execution becomes game reality. When we get better at practice, when we keep working on our techniques, the fundamentals, and then it shows up on Sunday and we play well, that's what success is judged on in my opinion."

Q: In talking with Anthony [Averett] yesterday, he said the mentality has got to be a dog mentality. What does that mean, from a coaching standpoint?

Coach Graham: "The dog mentality - I mean you've got to understand there's like a 20-year age difference, so I don't know. The mentality I want them to have is to get better every day, be good teammates and coworkers, and work hard every day. That's what I'm looking for. What I want them to do - and I think the dog mentality might have something to do with this - I want them to go out there and compete. And we've got a room of guys that are willing to compete. And again, like I said, the competition started a while ago and today we've got to compete to win Thursday because I know they're working, so we're working. We're competing to win this Thursday, and then just keep building, just keep building until we get to Sunday."

Q: You mentioned keeping the quarterback in the pocket - when the natural tendency of your pass rushers is to get to the quarterback, what are the principles involved and also being able to build a fence around the quarterback, so he doesn't escape that pressure?

Coach Graham: "So, I'll get technical a little bit. Now this goes to day one install before we talk about even who the quarterback is - you're trying to cage the quarterback. So usually let's start with the assumption you have four people rushing. You've got contain rush on both sides, and then someone has to control the middle of the pocket, and then there's like what we talk about in terms of B gap control. So, what you're trying to do is just crush the pocket around the quarterback. So, there's really four elements of it on a normal play, then you add a fifth rusher, or you take away a rusher and you have a third rusher. You're really trying to control those two things: the contain on the outside, the middle push who's in front of the quarterback and the B gap, that's when you look at passers. But that's regardless of whether we were playing the Chargers or not, and thankfully Frank [Okam] Rob [Ryan], Matt [Edwards], those guys and the head coach is emphasizing, 'Hey, this is how we rush the passer.' But that started a long time ago."

Q: How do you kind of balance wanting to keep that discipline in caging the quarterback with the freelancing rushers with a guy like Maxx Crosby or Chandler Jones who do so much improvising in their pass rush?

Coach Graham: "Again, we have some guys that have had a lot of success in this league because their skilled and they work hard. Pass rush to me, and I've been fortunate, I've had some really good pass rushers around me in my career - part of its effort, part of it is understanding the principles and understanding how to crush the pocket for the quarterback. Again, there's certain elements to the pass rush, people get caught up in the fancy stuff that sort of shows up on TV and stuff like that. The best pass rushers I've been around, they understand how the pocket moves, how it's fluid in there. And we try to make a point of them understanding the basic mechanics of a pocket and how we've got to try to affect the quarterback. So, I don't use the term freelance, I see skill there, and they have a pretty good understanding."

Q: You talk about players with versatility, especially in your scheme. One player that really stood out during OTAs and training camp and during the preseason was Divine Deablo, a converted free safety. Can you talk about his skills, converting from that safety position to that linebacker position and what kind of flexibility that gives you on the second level?

Coach Graham: "I would say it starts with understand how we want to play the run. We want to set the edge and build a wall inside, and it involves the edge being set from outside in, and it involves with people pressing the line of scrimmage. So, it starts there. And then the 'want to'. I've seen an improvement over time with [Divine] Deablo, and really impressed with how he's worked at it, but it starts with 'want to'. It starts with understanding what we're looking for and then with 'want to', and he's worked on it every day. He's worked on it every day."

Q: Is there an element of surprise for Week 1 in terms of other teams never having seen you coach with the Raiders before?

Graham: "The first game, you're trying to feel out your team. There is going to be adjustments made within the game, so you might have an idea what you want to do. They come out, they do well. I mean, they got a lot of good players out there, starting with offensive line. I know we’ve talked about the quarterback, but you got the offensive line, you got the running back, you got the receivers, the tight end, they're all pretty dynamic. And they might throw a monkey wrench into your plan, and you got to change it. So, I just know that the first game there's going to be a lot of adjustments going on. You try to anticipate it and you try to game plan what we think is going be best. But you got to be prepared to adjust during the game."

Q: What did you think of Luke Masterson’s training camp and warranted him making this team?

Graham: "I think it starts with how studious [he is] in terms of preparing for each day. He's here when I'm here for breakfast. He's working at it. You see him with his playbook – I say playbook, but the iPad, that's what they use now. And then the extra meeting time, the questions, and then going out there and performing. That's how you make the team - you perform and that's how you make the team. I couldn't be more proud of the fact that he did that. And he knows that he has to earn it every day, and that's how he goes about his workday and his work week. It's been pretty impressive for a young player. And I would say the conversion from safety to linebacker, he's a football player. Maybe he had to learn a little bit about the position a little bit more, but he's a football player. Around here we like good football players, and we figure out places to put them, and he's done a good job with that."

Q: How have you developed your adaptability throughout your coaching career?

Graham: "The tree I came from with Bill [Belichick] at New England. The thing is you try to do what's best for the week to beat that team, to beat that opponent. So, whatever that may be – if you have to change the front, if you have to change the coverage. Again, it's not really that complicated. It's just, 'Okay, let's make sure we take care of their strengths and let's attack their weaknesses.' It's not like we evented it. I think it's coaching. I think all of the other 31 teams are doing the same thing, they're trying to figure out a way to go after your weaknesses and try to make sure their strengths are showing up on the tape. It's really how I was raised."

Q: For a defensive coach, to watch film of last year’s Raiders-Chargers game, was that like watching a horror film to see how much offense was going on in that game?

Graham: "No. I mean, it's more intel. It was an exciting game. I will say this, when we were watching the two-minute drive at the end of the night – that was 30 plays, it felt like. We were getting a little tired, but it was okay. We fought through it. But it was an exciting game, a lot of situations came up in it. Again, just get your brain going. I remember watching over the summer break, I said, 'Oh, there are a lot of situations in this game going on.' You're sitting there, trying to go to the beach and the pool and stuff, and all of a sudden, you're right there in the football mode because you're like, 'Okay, get back on track in two minutes." I enjoyed watching the game, especially because the Raiders won, so it was good."

Q: What have you seen on tape from running back Austin Ekeler that gives the Chargers the chance to be balanced on offense?

Graham: "Just knowing a little bit about his background from what I've read, and then what you see on the tape, there's a level of toughness there that I would say that there are not a lot of people on this planet that are as tough as this guy. How he got there, what he's done with his opportunity, I'm always impressed with these young people. People forget, these guys are 25-26, going on 30, and they're the best in the world at what they do. At such a young age, you got to applaud that. To make that decision from wherever the start was, I'm just really impressed with what he does out there on the field and how he got to this point. And then you talk about the skill level, I mean, the guy can run, he can catch the ball, he's blocks in pass pro. He's really impressive. They move them all around, so obviously he has some football intelligence in terms of knowing the scheme. And he scores points. And you talk about offensive players, he's a guy that can catch, he can block, he can run. He can run between the tackles; he can run with the ball after catch. I mean, he's just a really impressive player that's definitely not under my radar because he's pretty dynamic and he can do everything right. He can do everything at a high level, which is impressive."

The Silver and Black are ready to kick it off on Sunday at 1:25 PM PT in Los Angeles against the Chargers.

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