Jul 28, 2022; Las Vegas, Nevada, US; Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Malcolm Koonce (51) during training camp at Intermountain Healthcare Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Lucas Peltier-Imagn Images Lucas Peltier-Imagn Images

Malcolm Koonce Gives Insight Into Recovery

Originally posted on Las Vegas Raiders on SI
By Michael France | Last updated Mar 12, 2025 11:30 AM ET

Malcolm Koonce is betting on himself. That is why the defensive end signed a one-year, $12 million deal with the Las Vegas Raiders.

A "prove it" deal.

The Raiders, in turn, are also betting on Koonce, who sustained an ACL injury in Week 1 of the 2024 season, effectively ending his 2024 campaign before it started.

After Koonce re-signed with the Raiders, he told reporters via Zoom call that he was "in a good place" with his recovery.

"Trust the Raiders training staff over here, lifting staff, they’ve been putting me in a good place, in a good position," said Koonce. "And it was extremely frustrating. It's like an overall feeling that you let people down, even though it's something that you couldn't help, but I'm happy that's behind me and I can only look forward."

Koonce emphasized the impact of the Raiders organization in his recovery. The aid wasn't just from the training staff or medical staff. It was the very players he took the defensive line with and the coaches that mentor him day-to-day.

"I was around here doing my rehab and stuff," he said. "So, the strength staff, they were very encouraging. The training room staff, very encouraging. And then, don't forget my teammates. Robbie [Leonard] all the time, he was always giving me little talks and stuff like that. You got Maxx [Crosby], you got AB [Adam Butler], you got Christian [Wilkins]. I was over there with him (Wilkins) talking the whole time too because he was rehabbing. So, definitely just everybody around me, the Raiders organization."

The fourth-year defensive end is 27 years old and he has only played in 39 games for the Raiders, who drafted him in the third round of of the 2021 NFL Draft. Koonce has just 10 sacks to his name and nine tackles for loss.

Injuries and inconsistency are the culprit to the anemic numbers and sparce playing time. There is a lot to improve on the football side of things alone, and Koonce mentioned that he isn't just working on recovery.

"You can kind of take some time to come back to the drawing board and look at your old film and look at film across the league," said Koonce. "Also, since you're not playing, you can pay attention to guys on the team. So, just focusing on stuff that you see across the league and that you can implement in your game, that's something I was doing, and just kind of reflecting on my career so far."

This article first appeared on Las Vegas Raiders on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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