Offseason Interview with Ramesu

by Weedseed1 | 8 years ago | 1 Comments

With the offseason activities in full effect, I sat down the with the coach of the 9 and 7 Oakland Raiders, Ramesu.

Hello Coach Ramesu. Thanks for doing this interview. This team went 9-7. Not a loosing season, but not good enough, right?

Coach: Thanks for having me, weed. Honored to do this. We were extremely disappointed with our 9-7 finish. The defense was really a sieve all year and we had 2 games that ended in our opponents' red zone down less than one score. Most of our starters on both sides are returning and we're looking forward to making a better effort next season

Exactly, some would argue that this defense from secondary to d line is the best. You have 2 premier edge players. What do the Raiders have to do to make sure the disappointments on defense start to be the norm in Oakland?

Coach: In the beginning of the season we took a more aggressive approach on both sides to try to get early leads and control the game. Unfortunately, the secondary we constructed wasn't quite up to the task as we'd planned. Later in the year we fell back to our fundamental approach and saw more success. The plan going into next season will be to have as much complimentary football as possible. Sustain long drives on offense to protect the defense and we expect to have a top 10 unit in season 32

You want to have longer drives, but your loosing your mainstay at running back, Latavius Murray. How much is Murray being gone going to impact that ball control type of offense?

Coach: We drafted Rashaud Conway last season in the first round and in the second half of last season he became the starter and demonstrated that he could carry the load. We also have Dechauz McKee....power back, 3rd year guy out of Penn State...he complimented Latavius before RC got here and we have complete faith in a Conway and McKee led backfield

Conway has to produce right? I mean a 1st round pick and now that his mentor is gone, its do or die right?

Coach: Most definitely....we're only gonna go as far as 27 can take us. But he's got "it" and we're ready for it

How do you make sure your not putting too much pressure on a young player like Conway, but still use him as a bell cow?

Coach: Top 5? We were the best. Had D.C. Not gone down vs the Packers when Blaine threw for 400 he would've won the passing title last season. The approach will be different next season though. We expect shortened games fewer possessions and just to play mistake free on Offense. We'll be focused on being efficient more than anything and our only goal is to be a winning offense regardless of stats.

So it seems like the whole league is transitioning to the Kelly model, minimal blitzes, rush 3 or 4, and keep all the rest back in coverage. How much does this style and his success with this style of defense input with your philosophy change?

Coach: It will have zero impact. We'll continue to defend the way we do. We strive to be the best situational football team in RZ and a big part of that is calling plays that apply to the down/distance/personnel

Does Kelly's success make you think about adopting aspects of his style?

Coach: Not at all. I'm a traditionalist at heart...we'll use 5 WR and 3-man rush but not as a primary mode of attack or a foundational philosophy

Last season you moved Mack to the middle. What impact has this made on his game, and also your defense as a whole? You took maybe the best edge rusher in the game, and told him to cover in space. It reminds me of when the Packers moved Clay Matthews to inside linebacker due to injuries, but they eventually moved him back. Are Khalil's days on the edge now over?