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HENDERSON, Nev. — Maxx Crosby missed his second straight day of practice Thursday due to a high ankle sprain, but there was a tall, lanky Las Vegas Raiders defensive end flying around and being very demonstrative. It was Tyree Wilson , last year’s first-round draft pick who is working hard to fill some shoes.
No, not Crosby’s. Let’s be serious. Wilson is getting more playing time because Malcolm Koonce was sidelined for the season and he’s trying to make good on all that size and potential.
Advertisement The Raiders (1-2) need Wilson to produce after he was slowed last season by the foot injury he suffered in college. He had to eat some humble pie ahead of his sophomore campaign and then missed the Week 2 over the Baltimore Ravens with a sore knee. “He just hasn’t played a lot of football,” coach Antonio Pierce said.
“The more practice reps we can get for him, the more he’s comfortable in the game, the more he sees it. It’s muscle memory and it’s also visual memory, right? So the more he sees that, the better he’ll become, and the better player he’ll be.” Wilson had 3 1/2 sacks last season and a quarterback hit Sunday against the Carolina Panthers , an ugly loss in which Crosby played with the sprained ankle and was ineffective.
Crosby was surprisingly noncommittal when asked if he will play Sunday against the Cleveland Browns . “I’m not worried about that right now,” he said. “I am just worried about (today’s treatment).
” Crosby admitted that he was frustrated against the Panthers. “I play one way and when you’re not able to do certain things, it’s tough,” Crosby said. “But I did everything .
.. to try to produce and I feel like I did some things, some good things, but it’s tough.
I have a damn Timberland boot-size wrapping on my leg ...
and it’s, it’s tough. “But at the end of the day, I don’t complain. I’m focused on getting healthy, just taking it one day at a time.
” Defensive tackle Christian Wilkins was double-teamed often Sunday with Crosby not being his usual self. Even with a healthy Crosby the first two games, the Raiders defense ranks 32nd in pressure rate on all opponent dropbacks (20 percent), per TruMedia. When they rush five or more players .
.. it gets worse, as they rank 32nd in pressure rate at 15 percent.
GO DEEPER Raiders defense tries to remain confident after ugly loss and recent injuries The defense was supposed to be the team’s strength, and it was really bad in the 36-22 loss to the Panthers. Pierce called out the players’ effort , the players thought there was a productive meeting about it Monday, but the only place they can respond is on the field Sunday. “You get knocked down, we’re men, we gotta get back up,” Wilson said Thursday.
“Come back and fight. We see our defense as being one of the best defenses in the NFL .” Advertisement The 6-foot-6, 275-pound Wilson thinks he has a fighting chance this season after missing training camp last year following foot surgery.
He was very slow getting off the ball at first and then he started pressing. “Your first year in the NFL, everybody is in your ear, everybody has something to say,” Wilson said. “And then you start chasing plays, and the more you don’t make, you start feeling that pressure.
...
It’s frustrating because you’re the man in college, and then you’re at the bottom here. But the vets in here always told me that the big plays come when you do the right thing, and that starts in practices and walkthroughs.” Something to prove.
#CLEvsLV pic.twitter.com/y3Xr3NsNw6 — Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) September 25, 2024 Wilson said he thought he earned Crosby’s respect by working harder this offseason.
He also borrowed some nutrition and sleep tips. “I tried to work with him all offseason to improve my game,” Wilson said. GO DEEPER Maxx Crosby and Raiders' defensive line continues its push to be among NFL's best What’s the next step for Wilson? “What you’re looking for from a defensive end is physicality, just physicality,” defensive coordinator Patrick Graham said.
“And then from there, again, if you’re wrong, be physical. Be physical.” Be physical and then, as Graham tells his players, you gain precision through vision.
“Get your eyes in the right place, so you can read your keys,” Graham said. Pass rushers are rarely single-blocked by the guy lined up across from them, so Wilson has been learning to read the players around him. Once Wilson knows what’s coming for him, he can better know how to place his hands and look for leverage.
“You just have to test your eyes in practices and especially in walkthroughs, when things are moving slow,” Wilson said. “And then be critical of yourself when you watch game film, and see what you should have seen or tackles that you should have made or rushes that you could have done better. I am not trying to stay in the same place, I am trying to get better.
” Advertisement And the last part of the equation ...
confidence. “That’s where confidence comes from — technique,” Wilson said. “I am making plays in practice because my technique is right.
” Asked whether it was night and day from where he was last season, Wilson said, “Maybe more like night to late afternoon, but it’s a big jump.” Raiders coaches also feel like his motor has been running higher in games this season, as far as finishing plays. It was definitely revving on Thursday, and Crosby, after his treatment for his ankle was over, smiled when he heard about Wilson’s antics at practice.
“That’s good to hear,” Crosby said. “We talk in our (meeting) room about how the D-line is supposed to be the engine for this team. And it can’t just be me.
Everybody has to buy into winning and improving.” And some players, like Wilson, may just take longer to hit their stride. “He’s got a lot of room to improve, but he knows that and he’s getting better every day,” Crosby said.
“He’s in the early stage of his career, and I know that people have expectations and things like that, but in reality, he shows up every day and he’s learning how to be a professional, and I am happy that he is starting to get into his own groove.” (Photo of Tyree Wilson: Brooke Sutton / Getty Images).
