Prior to the Oakland Raiders returning to the practice field Thursday afternoon in preparation for their Week 9 matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers, defensive coordinator Ken Norton, Jr., held his weekly press conference at the team's Alameda, Calif., facility.
Here are the highlights from his time behind the microphone.
Norton shared his thoughts about Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
"He's big, strong, really good arm, has really good control and understands his offense really well. They've always been able to surround him with some really good receivers. He has the confidence to just throw it up there. He has the guys to go up and get it."
He also spoke about running back DeAngelo Williams' skillset.
"Because he hasn't been the receiving option doesn't mean he can't be. He can catch balls. He can catch screens. He can catch check downs just as good as [Le'Veon] Bell. It's not really a letdown. You look at his numbers and they're very comparable to Bell's."
Each week there is room for improvement.
"The key is the same for us every week, just really work on ourselves. There's a lot of things that we do well and a lot of things we need to considerably get better at."
Once again, stopping the tight end will be critical for success.
"They are very good. Obviously, tight ends are a big weapon for them and for a lot of teams in this league. We just have to look at the film and see if there's any way that we can cover them."
He also spoke about the development of rookie defensive end Mario Edwards Jr.
"If you're a Raider fan, you have to be a Mario Edwards fan. Picking up in the draft, picking him up like that where we did and what he's been able to do and the improvement that he's had each and every week, how hard he's playing, how violent he's playing, how fun it is to watch him play and the way he listens and the way [defensive line] coach [Jethro] Franklin is working with him. [I'm] really, really impressed with his development."
