Raiders' Week 4 Outlook Hinges on Total-Team Improvement

Baby Steps

The Raiders drafted cornerback Darien Porter, as his physical abilities and overall skill set were deemed valuable by the Raiders' front office. Raiders Head Coach Pete Carroll is well-known for his previous work with cornerbaks, especially ones who are tall, strong and fast.

Still, the Raiders did not give Porter much of a chance to showcase his abilities. Las Vegas' defensive backfield needs all the help it can get. Porter is a legitimate option to provide the Raiders with the help they need.

Before practice earlier this week, Carroll credited Porter with a solid performance in the Raiders' Week 3 loss.

"He did fine. He had a couple good tackles that he made. He situated himself well in all of his looks and coverages. He's made a couple tackles on special teams too, so that was one of the things we wanted to see, what he would look like. So, he did a nice job, and so I'm not hesitant to play him at all," Carroll said.

Las Vegas would be wise to consider playing Porter even more, especially if they find themselves behind big on the scoreboard late in a game again. Cornerback is a position that players need as many repetitions as possible at to be successful.

Earlier this week, Raiders Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham explained his excitement during the Raiders' loss to the Washington Commanders in Week 3. Graham was pleased that the rookie had recorded the first tackle of his professional career.

"I was glad when he got a tackle, that was very encouraging. Any rookie corner, their first time getting a tackle on that crack replace. I'm always proud of that. I'm like, 'Hey.’ Because you try to warn them during training camp and OTAs, like, ‘It's a little different, man. This guy's going to roll off of that 45 and he's going to be a big boy.’ So, I was happy he got that tackle, so I was pleased with that," Graham said.