Digging Deep Into the Raiders Roster & Exploring Every Player

Pete Carroll understands how to build a team and to mold men.  It is part of his DNA, and it is why he has won championships at both the college and the NFL level.

He has shown off that talent every day since arriving in the desert, and while this team isn’t one poised to hoist the Lombardi Trophy at the end of the season, it is vastly improved and headed in that direction.

Pete Carroll spoke on a myriad of topics after practice, and below we have a partial transcript for you.

Head Coach Pete Carroll

Q: What did you know about Dylan Laube before taking this job, and what has he shown you in camp? Carroll: "I didn't. I didn't know. Someone on the roster when I looked at the board the first time, and he has really been kind of the epitome of a great competitor so far. All the way through the lead in OTA sessions and all of that, he always stood out with his effort, with his finish and all of that. He's been kind of a prized part of the special teams because of his attitude and the intensity that he brings. And then he's showing it in the games, showed it in the mock game too. Both chances that he's had, he's made a big statement that he's fighting for a place on this team." Q: How much will special teams weigh into, not just him, but like a lot of those reserves? Carroll: "It does weigh in. It just depends by situation, but it is crucially important."

Q: When you have sloppy play in the practice and you have a lot of penalties, how do you go about cleaning that out? Carroll: "You get after them first off, like we did, and then we have to make sure that we work together. But like I said, a bunch of those were the young guys, and we were still hard counting and doing something and all of the intricacies of our cadence. It's just we didn't jive together. We have to mix better and make sure that we take care of those guys and know who you're working. We worked ourselves instead of working the defense."

Q: Is that more film work, or is that both film and field? Carroll: "Repetitions. It's just repetitions over a long period of time to get right."

Q: When you look at your roster, there's a lot of guys where there's a lot of competition. Are you happy with how the competition's going? Do you wish there was more? What is your thought process? Carroll: "I'm always looking for more competition, but it is apparent that in all different phases of our team, we have guys that are battling to push to get their spots. And we're trying to give them opportunities with the higher group to show that they can match up and all that. And it's exactly what this program is all about. So the more competitive we can make it, the longer it can keep the competitiveness alive. We don't need to make any big decisions right away. We'll take our time at it and let it continue to factor in. Guys coming into the program and a new guy comes in today, [Terrell] Edmunds comes in today, guys take note of that. They know that we're still looking, we're still trying to get this as competitive as we could possibly get. So we'll be pushing that way forever, but right now it's really apparent."

Q: End of practice at the goal line, there was some guys out there that may not make this team, and your starters were cheering. Is that what you're talking about when you're looking for competition. You got starters out there rooting guys that may not even make the team, but that's the battle. Carroll: "A statement would be if you want to play on a great team, you need to be a great teammate. Being a great teammate is given to the guys that you play with and feeling that responsibility. And so they're demonstrating that while they have their opportunities. It just feeds off one another, and we need to continue to call for it until they feel it and they embrace it and it's theirs. And so that's what we're working at gaining."

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