Guenther's thoughts on the defense

By Vic Tafur May 1, 2019  26
The​ Raiders’​ new draft​ picks​ will​ hit​ the field Friday, but as​ coach​ Jon Gruden has​ said,​ a big​ part​ of​ the team’s​​ success this season depends on last year’s draft picks.

Especially on the defensive side. Defensive linemen Mo Hurst, Arden Key and P.J. Hall are at the facility as the team’s offseason program hits its second gear, and defensive coordinator Paul Guenther is pleased with their progress heading into Year 2.

“They are looking good,” Guenther said in a phone interview Sunday. “You can just see a different vibe with them. They come into the building this year knowing what to expect. They all have a confident gait to them.

“Some of the free-agent moves we made in the offseason help build the excitement of what we could be, and these guys are ready to compete and take that next step to help us get there.”

Key, the third-round pick out of LSU last year, had one sack in 16 games and left with the mandate to put some more muscle on his 6-foot-5, 238-pound frame in the offseason. He doesn’t look bigger in photos from recent workouts on the team website (there has been no media access), but Guenther said he is not too concerned.

“He’s probably right where we need him to be,” Guenther said. “We’re trying to put a little more muscle mass on him now, so he is in there lifting. We don’t want him to get too heavy. He got up to 270 at LSU and he looked like a slug, you know what I am saying.”

The Raiders drafted three defensive ends last weekend, with first-round pick Clelin Ferrell slated to step in as an every-down lineman.

“Arden can play in the role we envisioned for him last draft,” Guenther said.

That would be as a rusher on passing downs.

Consistent roles will be a nice luxury.

“Last year, we used 12 different combinations of ends,” Guenther said. “That’s the most I have ever used, and it’s not even close.”

The Raiders did not draft a linebacker with their nine picks, as they signed two starting linebackers in the offseason, Vontaze Burfict and Brandon Marshall. Burfict will start in the middle with Marshall and returning starter Tahir Whitehead flanking him.

“They bring a lot of experience,” Guenther said. “Obviously, I go back a long way with Vontaze, and he can get us in and out of calls. He is another guy that can wear the green dot — Tahir did a great job with that, but it’s tough your first year, when you are still learning your job and you’re trying to get guys in and out of defenses.

“I really had to back off what I did on game day. I may call a defense where I want to blitz but if they’re in a max-protection, let’s get out of it … and that was a lot for him, when he is just trying to learn his job.”

Guenther and Burfict, 28, were together for six seasons with the Bengals.

“Burfict has been through all of that, plus the attitude that he brings, and the edginess is something we really need,” Guenther said.

Marshall, 29, started every game for the Broncos from 2015-17 before only starting seven last year and being released.

“Marshall is a guy that has played a lot in coverage,” Guenther said. “Smart guy, played in a Super Bowl and has played a lot of the same coverage techniques that we teach here. (Broncos coach) Vance Joseph was my DB coach in Cincinnati, so all this stuff for Marshall is kind of a carryover from Denver.”

Last year, Guenther played second-year linebackers Marquel Lee (11 starts) and Nicholas Morrow (five starts) and rookie Jason Cabinda (five starts) more than he probably would have liked. But now he has some experienced depth.

And don’t sleep on Lee. He had bulked up to 250 last year, but Guenther said he is down to 238.

“I told him this is the AFC West, you have to be able to cover,” Guenther said. “He looks good. … I told each guy before he left last season the two or three things that they have to improve on. And I was bluntly honest with all of them. And Marquel has come back in great shape. He may be a different guy on the field, too.”