Las Vegas Raiders Insider Podcast Offers Five major Things observed After just Two Games” they could be this season keys to glory….
This weekend, the air-conditioned and cozy Allegiant Stadium will host the Las Vegas Raiders (1-1) when they return home in the scorching desert to play the Carolina Panthers (0-2). With the lowly Panthers to town, the Raiders hope to build on their surprising victory over the Baltimore Ravens this past weekend and start a winning streak.
Our latest episode of the Las Vegas Raiders Insider Podcast elaborates on the five facts we have learned about the Silver and Black after two regular season games.
Below is the transcript of Gardner Minshew’s press conference on Wednesday.
Q: What is your relationship like with Brock Bowers, and how have you seen his growth on and off the field?
Minshew II: “Yeah man. I have to be honest, with Brock [Bowers], he was pretty great the day the showed up. That dude has been making plays from day one. So, I mean, to get him in game situations, to have the trust in him has really been easy. He’s earned it the whole time, and it’s really cool to have a guy like that on your team.”
Q: What has impressed you most about Brock Bowers on the field and about his skill set?
Minshew II: “He wins in man, has a feel for zone, and has some catch-and-run juice to him. I was excited to see how much juice he had with some of his first down catches. G getting up, being fired up. That was awesome to see.”
Q: You have played for some teams that have good home field advantages. What’s your anticipation for being at Allegiant Stadium for the first time in a regular season game?
Minshew: “I’m so fired up to get home. Home opener. Everybody says we’re going to have a great crowd, man. I’m ready to hear it, ready to see it, ready to feel it. It means a lot to us, and we want to make this one of those places. We want to make our home field a true home field and something that we love coming back to. And it’s on us to make it that way.”
Q: We asked Davante Adams along with Antonio Pierce and captains if they were going to instill a message, if it’s even needed, that this week’s Carolina Panthers will be last week’s Las Vegas Raiders. Nobody expected you all to win. No one expects them to win. Do you have to go in there with that mentality?
Minshew: “Yeah, absolutely. I mean, that’s every week you have to earn it. There are no free passes in this league. It doesn’t matter who you are, everybody’s good in this league. Everybody can win in this league. So, we got to have a great week of practice, and we have to show up, and we have to play our best ball no matter what.”
Q: Through two weeks, you’re tied for second in the league and passing yardage. What does that mean when you hear that?
Minshew: “Nothing really. I wish we were 2-0.”
Q: What does that mean for the team’s success though offensively?
Minshew: “I don’t know, we should probably run the ball a little more.”
Q: You completed a high percentage of your passes as well. And you talked during training camp about wanting to be a point guard type quarterback. Is that kind of the byproduct of spraying the ball around, being that facilitator?
Minshew: “I think so, man. We’ve been seeing some kind of softer zone coverages. They’ve been keeping a top on things. I think we did a better job last game of when we got our one-on-ones, taking shots downfield. But I think the big part, especially when they’re running and hitting the way, you have to keep it on track; keep us in second and seven or better, and then third down and five or better. Just keeping us in manageable downs, I think is really important for our success.”
Q: How big of a deal was Maxx Crosby’s pep talk to you after the interception early on?
Minshew: “No, it’s awesome, man. He grabbed me and just said, ‘Hey, we got your back, dude. We need that Washington State Gardner [Minshew]. We need that.’ And I was like, ‘Man, you’re right, dude. Let me see if I can go whip that up real quick.’ But no man, that dude is a great leader. He does it the right way, man, and I couldn’t be more grateful to have him on our team.”
Q: There have been lots of changes with your offense, and there’s kind of a rhythm that we all had an opportunity to see. How do you build from that going on to this next game?
Minshew: “Yeah, I think it’s just about consistency. I think there’s a lot of things we did well and just kind of getting into that flow sooner. Finding that confidence sooner. In both of these games, it has taken us way too long. So, I think just understanding that we have that when we are dialed in on our details. We just have to have that from the jump.”
Q: What changed for you guys in the fourth quarter? Obviously, things kind of started going your way. What were you guys doing?
Minshew: “I don’t know, man. I mean, you’re calling the same plays, we had the same guys out there. I think it’s just literally everybody being on the same page. I put a lot of trust in those receivers, and they paid me back for it. I think that was a big part of it. The line held up and we blocked really well down the stretch. I think everybody just taking their play to the next level, and that’s what it’s going to take.”
