The Las Vegas Raiders defense performed largely well in their 22-10 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday in the season opener.
Although the loss was bitter, the team knows it has to move on quickly. The focus is now firmly on the Baltimore Ravens and reigning NFL MVP Lamar Jackson. There is no time for the Raiders to worry or look back.
Las Vegas’ new defensive tackle Christian Wilkins, who made a strong debut for the Raiders, knows exactly what kind of challenge Jackson poses.
“Yeah, he’s definitely as good as it gets, as dynamic as it gets,” Wilkins told reporters this week. “The definition of a dual threat. He’s a big challenge for any defense in this league. So I’m sure the coaches are going to work hard. Pat (Graham) is going to work hard to put a good game plan together so we can try to limit some of the things he does. But even then, it’s different when you still have to go against him. But I believe in our guys and I believe in our coaches and our plan. So we’re going to recover and focus and do what we need to do this week to try to put ourselves in the best position.”
Wilkins is not only focused on stopping Jackson, but also knows the Raiders can build on their good defensive performance from the loss to the Chargers.
“I think we can definitely do it. We have the guys to do it,” Wilkins said. “We have the leadership, we have what it takes to do it and continue to deliver a good product every week. It’s just about maintaining conditioning, drive after drive, no matter the situation, where the ball ends up, all of that. No matter how many times we have to go there, both mental conditioning and physical conditioning and just staying balanced. And I think we just did a good job the next game of not flinching, not blinking and just continuing to play. So that was definitely good to see and it’s encouraging for the future.”
