Raiders TE Coach Luke Steckel Praises Michael Mayer

Tight end Michael Mayer was the Las Vegas Raiders' second-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, and after a rookie season with plenty of struggles, it looks like he could potentially take a big step in 2024.

Raiders tight ends coach Luke Steckel spoke to the media at a recent OTA. He said everything seemed to be clicking early on -- the quarterbacks and the tight ends were "meshing," and the tight end room was looking solid.

Mayer stood out.

"I cannot say enough good things about Mike Mayer, his professional approach for a guy that's only in his second year. He's got me and everyone else fooled," Steckel said. "I mean, the leadership he's shown in the room, the energy he brings every day. He's an incredible teammate. He's encouraging his fellow teammates, his fellow tight ends, the entire offense. I mean, I can't say enough good things. He's been absolutely outstanding.

"I had really high expectations because of his reputation as a player and as a person before I got here, and he's exceeded all of those."

Mayer told reporters at a recent OTA that he found everything to be "simpler" in Year 2. Mayer said that "just play ball" is the current mentality, but he has also been enjoying himself and he is "way more positive."

Steckel wants to keep it simple.

"We're trying to lay the foundation right now in OTAs," he said. "You're not going to win any games in April or May, but you're building that foundation to win games. Mike's been outstanding. You know, I'm happy to hear that he finds it simpler. And I don't know what previous offenses he’s been in were like, but it's our job as coaches to make the complicated simple. So if it's feeling simple to him, hopefully that means us as a coaching staff are doing something right.

"But we're going to continue to build, our installs are in the infancy stage right now. We're going to keep building on those and there's a lot more of the playbook coming his way and coming all of our ways. ... So excited about the progress Mike's made and the entire tight end room.”

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MICHAEL FRANCE