Marvin Lewis Singled Out A Las Vegas Raider Who Inspired The Rest Of The Defense

Training camp has finished up for the Las Vegas Raiders , and the team is now shifting its focus towards their first preseason game, which takes place this Saturday night.

There are a lot of storylines heading into this game, and most of those are regarding the team's quarterback competition, which has been anything but impressive up until this point.

Still, there are reasons to be excited, as the Raiders' defense has looked excellent so far throughout the Summer. If the Raiders want to contend for a playoff spot this season, they'll need the defense to stand tall and hold firm throughout the year.

It sounds like the unit is ready to do that, as assistant coach Marvin Lewis mentioned in an interview during camp:

"Players are seeing an opportunity to raise their lot and get more playing time, maybe become a starter or a role player... Watching what Malcolm Koonce did at the end of the year, I think everybody looks around and says, ‘Man, look what Malc did. I can do that,’ and I think that’s really important, and I think that’s the atmosphere that’s been created throughout the football team.”

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Koonce in particular really rose to the occasion last season , recording most of his eight sacks over the final few games of the year. He's an example of the depth this defense has, and according to his teammate, Christian Wilkins, the defense has grown in confidence:

“We built some confidence.”

A rather straightforward quote there from Wilkins, but it sets the tone this defense has carried throughout camp. The Raiders haven't had a defense with this much potential in a very long time, and it will be exciting to watch in 2024.