Linebacker Bruce Irvin
The Oakland Raiders showcased a lot of potential on Sunday in their 35-34 victory over the New Orleans Saints, and it wasn't an easy victory. One player making his debut for the Silver and Black was linebacker Bruce Irvin. He wasted no time getting to quarterback Drew Brees, and forced a fumble on a strip sack. Irvin appeared on 95.7 The Game with Chad, Joe, and Lo Monday morning to talk about the win and the team going forward.
Here are the quick hits from his time on the air:
Irvin began by speaking about Head Coach Jack Del Rio's decision to go for the two-point conversion.
"Obviously it was a gutsy call, he just made the decision to go for the win instead of playing timid, and that's all you can ask for from your head coach. He believed in DC [Derek Carr] and they went out and got it done."
He appreciates the fact Raider Nation travels well and is a supportive fan base.
"I mean I knew Raider Nation travelled well when we went to Arizona, it damn near like a home game there. It was very impressive, there's only a few fan bases that travel like that. I would say Seattle, Oakland, and the Steelers travel well too, but it's always good to have your own fans wherever you go. They played a big part in the shift in the momentum yesterday and really believing in us, and we really appreciate it."
Irvin compared the Raiders defense to the Seattle Seahawks, saying that things take time to develop.
"That is not the standard that we want to be at, I try to tell them, and I told a couple dudes last night that in Seattle we weren't always dominant like that, we had our aches and pains, such as yesterday. Before we really gelled that thing together, and really started dominating other teams. It takes time, we got a lot of new pieces, me, Reggie, Sean, new faces, just got to be able to work through the aches right now. I'm very confident that we'll get it together, and we'll be one of the top defenses in the coming weeks."
He shared why he feels there are similarities between the Raiders and the team when he was in Seattle.
"Being that we're all so young, a lot of talent, but we still have communication problems still, and chemistry problems. That's how we started in Seattle, it takes time, it takes repetition, [and] it takes time for Reggie to know when Sean is going to jump a route so he can be over the top. That type of stuff takes time, me and Khalil still aren't on the same page rushing together, not just Khalil, but the whole D-line [Defensive line]. Just got to take it day-by-day, and with this group we're willing to get better, we're willing to learn."
Irvin also praised rookie running back Jalen Richard for his 75-yard touchdown run against the Saints.
"The kid is a ball player, I've been saying that since we were in Napa Valley, he was out there throwing his body in on pass protection, making people miss, running people over, the guy is a hell of a ball player. I was just so happy for him to have his first carry in his home state, being that it was his first time ever being in the Superdome, and to have a run like that I felt really good. I was happy for him, he's a really good kid."
