The Las Vegas Raiders needs all hands on deck right now, and that is what they've been getting.
Two contributors on defense in particular have been making strides as of late, linebacker Luke Masterson and cornerback Tyler Hall.
In his last four games, Hall has posted 11 tackles, a pass defensed, a quarterback hit and a tackle for loss.
Masterson, meanwhile, comes off a huge outing in Sunday's win over the New England Patriots, having registered 11 tackles, including a tackle for loss.
Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham credits his fellow position coaches for the development of the two young assets.
"Tyler with Coach [Jason] Simmons, Luke with Coach [Antonio] Pierce, and then on top of that, it's the quality control coaches," Graham said in his Tuesday press conference. "I think Josh [McDaniels] established that early on in the spring. Told those guys that’s part of what they're going to be evaluated on, getting the young players ready, and they've done a good job with that, both the coaches and the quality control coaches. But definitely I think it's a big part of your program when you have good quality control coaches. That's important to have because they got to get those guys ready in this league where you're going to lose guys throughout the season. So, kudos to those guys. They do a good job there.”
Masterson has been one of the Raiders' biggest surprises this season. Having been an undrafted free agent out of Wake Forest, nothing was guaranteed for the rookie, but he has certainly made the most of the opportunities he has been given.
"He works really hard," Raiders Coach Josh McDaniels said in his Monday press conference. "He's a young kid, but he doesn't prepare like a young kid. He's got a maturity about him. I think he really pays attention to the veteran players that could show a player like him how to do it right, even if they're not necessarily [in his room]. He has good guys in his room, obviously with Denzel [Perryman]. But I think he pays attention to Duron [Harmon], I think he pays attention to Maxx [Crosby] and Chandler [Jones]."
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