LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — In front of hundreds of fans at the team's facility in Henderson, the Las Vegas Raiders held the team's first practice in full pads on Monday.
With Pete Carroll leading the charge, the Raiders are preparing for the team's first preseason game on the road against Carroll's former team. Las Vegas visits the Seattle Seahawks on August 7.
Nick Walters took a trip to Raiders HQ to see how the team was faring just over a week out from their first game.
Despite coming off a 4-13 season in which former head coach Antonio Pierce went one-and-done at the helm, optimism is running high thanks to Carroll lighting a spark in the organization.
The 73-year-old's youthful energy was on full display when he covered punts early in Monday's practice, pretending to be trying to tackle returners, including star running back Ashton Jeanty.
It's that energy that his players are replicating. Putting on the pads and tackling players to the ground in team drills allows players to showcase what they can bring to the table this season.
"Everybody bringing their juice," cornerback Eric Stokes said. "Anybody could be a dog on the first day of pads. It's the second, that third day. Let's see what you're really made of. Anybody could just do it one day. Like, no, I need to see consistency."
"Everybody's competing for a position," special teams coordinator Tom McMahon said. "We created a lot of competition today, and every single guy got a rep within the competition... The pad part of it is very important, and we have to do a great job of managing the reps and what we're trying to get out of it so that we can get better."
Rookies put on the pads in practice for the first time in their NFL careers, including 6th overall pick and Heisman runner-up Ashton Jeanty.
"He's a natural catcher, but he's got really, really good run skill," McMahon said about Jeanty, who has also been working as a punt returner. "He's been impressive, and he acts like a rookie, he works like a rookie. That's straight respect for the vets, too."
Two other rookies throwing on the pads were wide receivers Jack Bech and Dont'e Thornton. While the perception from the outside is that the 2nd-round pick and 4th-round pick are competing for playing time, they've created a tight bond.
"Jack and I have been locked in from the moment we got here, even when we got drafted," Thornton told media. "We both talked to each other once we got drafted and stuff like that. That's learning plays, talking about stuff off the field with just life in general."
"We came in here with Coach Carroll, we're his first draft class, and we took a lot of pride in that," Bech said. "We took a lot of pride in being a Raider. And we just can't wait to be able to go out there on the field."
The Raiders will host an open practice at Allegiant Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Attendance for open practices at team headquarters and at Allegiant is free of cost.
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