After a much needed day of rest, the Raiders were back in the saddle again, this time welcoming fans to the indoor field for the first time to watch practice on "Back Together Saturday."
The Silver and Black focused a lot on the fundamentals Saturday morning. While the pads weren't on for the indoor practice, the intensity didn't die down for a team that's about to play their first preseason game in less than a week.
Both sides of the ball had their moments Saturday, here are some observations.
Training Camp has 'been a lot of fun' for Derek Carr
Saturday morning was a good day for Derek Carr, connecting with a good number of his receivers throughout practice. While Carr, like the rest of his teammates, is still trying to learn the new offense – he looks like he's picking it up well. The speed in which Carr is moving in the offense is what stood out to me, as he did a good job of quickly locating his receivers and using his accuracy to feed them the ball.
"It's been fun. Again, it's a process learning a new [offense] but it's fun for me," said Carr. "I enjoy the mental side of the game. So learning from Josh [McDaniels], Mick [Lombardi] and Bo [Hardegree] and how they see it. ... It's been a lot of fun."
His highlight throw of Saturday's practice was a deep ball to Davante Adams, finding the receiver in the end zone while scrambling out of collapsing pocket.
High hopes for second-year defenders
The Raiders' 2021 draft picks on the defensive side of the ball have continued to impress me.
I've been singing the praises of safety Tre’von Moehrig a lot as of late, but his draft classmates looked like they've greatly improved as well. LinebackerDivine Deablo has looked great in coverage, and could work his way into Patrick Graham's starting defense this season. Malcolm Koonce has looked good as well, and could see some meaningful snaps this preseason.
Fifth-round pick Nate Hobbs has been getting a lot of run through camp after a great rookie season that saw him step in as the starting nickel cornerback. The confidence and faith within himself has exponentially grown from last season.
"Last year, I felt like I believed [in myself] and I feel like it's no different this year," said Hobbs. "I feel like believing is knowing. That's what I stand on. I walk by faith, so I got faith myself and faith in God."
Quote of the day
Football, especially the NFL, is a, 'What have you done for me lately' world. It's not about what I did last year. It's not about what anybody on the team did last year. We've got to show it and bring it to the table every day. Nate Hobbs
Download the Raiders + Allegiant Stadium app to be the first to know the latest about the Silver and Black with push notifications and livestream alerts straight from the team.
View the best photos from Raiders 2022 Training Camp practice at Intermountain Healthcare Performance Center.