Tag: Malcolm Koonce

Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 11 loss to Dolphins

Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 11 loss to Dolphins

There were more than a few people who were surprised at how the Raiders hung around with the Dolphins the entire game in Miami. Many thought the Raiders would get their doors blown off and that isn’t so much disrespect for the Raiders as much as it is respect for the Dolphins.

But Antonio Pierce has the Raiders playing inspired football. Even if, at times, it isn’t great football — at least not on the offensive side of the ball — it’s inspired. And that’s all you can really hope for if you hope to get the most out of the talent you have available.

Hence the reason this game was never more than a one-score difference for either team and went down to the wire before the Dolphins won it 20-13.

Ballers

DE Maxx Crosby, DE Malcolm Koonce

In a game of defensive heroics, Maxx was still the heroic-est. But this time he got a little help from the other side of the line.

We pick things up in the third quarter. That’s when the Raiders stopped letting the Dolphins get to the end zone. Crosby stopped their second drive almost single-handedly. They moved to first down at the Vegas 36. Then Crosy got in the backfield to make the stop on run stuff for one yard. Next play he helped make a tackle on a two-yard catch. And on third down, got pressure to force a bad throw. The Dolphins attempted a 50-yard field goal and missed.

The next drive ended when Koonce got pressure up the middle on a stunt to force an incompletion, leading to another field goal attempt. This one connected from 41 yards out. Koonce would get pressure to help end the next drive as well with the Dolphins again settling for a field goal.

The fourth quarter saw three possessions by the Dolphins for a total of 19 yards of offense. The first had Koonce made a run stuff, then ended with a vicious tackle by Crosby to make the stop well shy of the sticks. The second was upended with Koonce forcing a holding penalty that the Dolphins couldn’t overcome. The final possession, they got their only first down on the fourth quarter, but it still ended three plays later with Crosby getting a pressure to force an incompletion. That defensive stand gave the Raiders offense one more shot with just under two minutes remaining.

CB Nate Hobbs, S Isaiah Pola-Mao

After the Raiders went up 10-7 in the first quarter, the Dolphins led out the second quarter looking like they might respond with a touchdown to retake the lead. Hobbs saw to it that didn’t happen. Once they got to the 30-yard-line, Hobbs made two tackles on short catches. The Dolphins would still drive to inside the five-yard-line. They would go for it on fourth-and-one from the three-yard-line and it was Hobbs who came up to make the initial hit behind the line and Pola-Mao finished it off for the turnover on downs.

In the final seconds of the second quarter, the Dolphins were up 14-10 and driving. That was until Hobbs punched the ball out to force a fumble and give the Raiders the ball at the Miami 32-yard-line. The ensuing field goal made it a one-point game at the half.

First play of the third quarter, Pola-Mao picked off a deep Tua Tagovailoa pass. He later teamed up on a stop on third down.

Hobbs and Pola-Mao finished third and fourth on the team in tackles respectively. And they combined for two of the Raiders’ three takeaways in the game.

P AJ Cole

Cole was launching some punts into orbit in this game. His first punt went 50 yards with an illegal blindside block at the end of it to start the Dolphins’ drive at the 14-yard-line.

He added a 53-yard punt in the second quarter that was fair caught. And later in the quarter broke off a beauty that traveled 61 yards and bounced out of bounds at the 12-yard-line.

Then in the third quarter he booted a 51-yard punt the was fair caught at the 15. And, finally, he kicked another 53-yarder with an illegal block on the return that started the Dolphins possession at their own 10.

A couple weeks ago against the Giants, Cole had four punts of 63 yards or more, which set a record. But this game was better in some regards, because of those big punts, only one was stopped inside the 20-yard-line. And two of them went for touchbacks. In fact, in Sunday’s game in Miami, on six punts, Cole had zero touchbacks and the Dolphins started their drive inside the 20 four times. That usually means better hang time and better placement. Which is preferable to just simple punt distance.

LB Robert Spillane

It might not surprise you to learn that Spillane led the Raiders in tackles (13). He also had a tackle for loss and a pass breakup that was very nearly an interception. Because of course he did. He’s become quite the ball hawk this season.

His first tackle of the game went for a loss. Then on the Dolphins’ first drive of the second quarter, he had three run stops, including a stop on third and ten just short of the sticks. The Dolphins went for it on fourth-and-one from the three and couldn’t convert.

Spillane was a big factor in stopping the Dolphins on their final two drives, thus giving the Raiders offense two more shots at tying the game late. He was in on the tackle on third-and-15 to force the first punt. Then he was in on the run stop on their second to last play as well.

Honorable Mention

WR Davante Adams — Got open a lot in this game. It wasn’t his fault Aidan O’Connell only connected with him on one deep shot. But it was the Raiders’ one TD in the game.

LB Luke Masterson — Forced the fumble on the Dolphins’ first drive to start the Raiders second possession already in scoring range.

DC Patrick Graham — While Antonio Pierce gets credit for this team playing inspired football, Graham should get some love for his work as well.

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Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 15 vs Patriots

The good and the bad for the Raiders from a crazy rollercoaster of a game vs the Patriots

You rarely see a team shoot themselves in the foot and snatch defeat from the jaws of victory as much as the Patriots did in Las Vegas on Sunday. And even with all the self-mutilation they did in this game, they still managed to make a comeback from 14 points down to lead the Raiders 24-17 with under two minutes left in the game.

That blowing double-digit leads thing is the Raiders’ MO this season. And it was only because of the final utterly inexplicably boneheaded decision to try a double lateral at the end of the game that the Raiders were able to win this one in regulation.

Ballers

DE Chandler Jones

Jones was the recipient of the ‘Right place at the right time’ award on that final play. He had missed the initial tackle on Rhamondre Stevenson that led to a big run which, for a moment, looked like he could go the distance. Everyone expected that last play to be stopped and the two teams to go to OT. But Stevenson lateraled it to Jacoby Meyers at the last instant.

That lateral wasn’t the big mistake. That came when Meyers decided to try and lateral it AGAIN, this time attempting to throw it way back to the entirely not athletic Mac Jones. Well, the lateral was complete to Jones, all right. It was just the wrong Jones. Then Chandler planted Mac with a stiff arm and took it back for the game-winning touchdown. Never seen anything like it.

Jones also had a pressure resulting in an incompletion two plays before that and made a run stop at the line on the previous possession leading to a crucial three-and-out. Earlier in the quarter, he hit Mac Jones from behind on third down to force the Pats to settle for a long field goal. All in all, a strong finish for Chandler.

CB Tyler Hall

He played 43 snaps (66%) and the only catch he gave up, he stopped in its tracks for four yards. He also had a big pass breakup on a deep pass to stop the Patriots’ first drive of the third quarter.

DE Malcolm Koonce

It’s not the number of snaps you have, but rather what you do with them. With 27 seconds left in the second quarter, Koonce came in on the punt team and streaked in to block the punt and give the Raiders the ball at the New England 20-yard-line. What looked like two teams that were headed for the locker room with the Raiders leading 10-3, would end up a scoring opportunity on which the Raiders were able to capitalize.

QB Derek Carr, WR Mack Hollins

The first touchdown drive for the Raiders came early in the second quarter. On the drive, Carr completed a 19-yard pass to Keelan Cole on third and nine and finished off the drive with a perfect pass over the middle for a 25-yard connection with Darren Waller.

After the punt block, Hollins made the first catch for 11 yards. He then drew an illegal contact penalty on the next play. Then in first and goal from the five-yard-line, Carr put the ball into a tight window, at Hollins’s knee level and he made the grab for the touchdown to give the Raiders a 17-3 lead at the half.

A Carr pick-six saw the Raiders lead cut to 17-10. Then they were unable to get back on track on the next drive. But Hollins would do his part to tilt the field. AJ Cole launched a 47-yard punt to the goal line where Hollins was waiting to down it at the two-yard line.

Ultimately the Raiders’ lead would disappear, giving way to a 24-17 Patriots lead with under three minutes remaining.

Carr would look to Hollins again. The first pass was overthrown and the Raiders went three-and-out. However, had Darren Waller not been in the wrong area and tried to catch the pass intended for Adams, that looked like it would have been a long touchdown catch and run.

Carr and Hollins got another shot with two minutes left in the game. Carr overthrew Hollins again on third down. But, the next play, on their last possible chance, Carr hit Hollins on a comeback route for 12 yards. They thought the play was so nice, they did it twice to the same result.

A few plays later, Carr found Keelan Cole for a 30-yard touchdown. It didn’t look like Cole actually got both feel inbounds, but Carr’s pass was where it needed to be and the officials saw no definitive evidence to overturn it so the score was tied at 24-24.

Honorable Mention

RB Josh Jacobs — He had ten touches for 61 yards on the Raiders’ first two scoring drives and finished with 93 yards on 22 carries (4.2 yards per carry).
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Tashawn Bower, Malcolm Koonce give Raiders reason to feel good about edge rusher depth

Raiders have to come out of Friday night feeling pretty confident in their depth behind Maxx Crosby and Chandler Jones

If Maxx Crosby and Chandler Jones aren’t the best pass rushing duo in the NFL, they’re very close to it. But for the Raiders, the question was what about behind them? What about when they need a breather or in the event one of them is lost to injury. Who steps in or steps up?

Throughout the preseason, the answer has developed slowly, and as of Friday night’s final preseason game against the Patriots, the answer is clear — it’s Malcolm Koonce and Tashawn Bower. And both of the gave the Raiders every reason to feel pretty good about that.

Bower in particular, had two sacks on the night, which, added to his previous total, gives him four sacks this preseason. I asked him how he felt about the position he put himself in as far as being the next man up after Crosby and Jones.

“I feel like I’ve done a good job, but I’m going to let the coaches decide that,” said Bower. “We have a lot of other good players too who can do great things, so whatever I can do to fit in in my role and have a piece on this defense or on this team, I’m ready to accept it.”

Bower has bounced around some in his career, first signing with the Vikings undrafted free agent out of LSU and then spending a couple seasons with the Patriots as well. In both instances, bouncing back and forth between the practice squad and the active roster.

Koonce is entering his second season after being selected in the third round of the 2021 draft. He has been getting good pressure all preseason and added his second sack Friday night. He also had another play that he got pressure to force his man to draw a holding penalty to keep him from blowing up the play.

It’s important to note, these weren’t the Patriots’ second and third team players they were going against. Bower and Koonce did much of their damage against the Patriots’ first team offense.

“That just shows our depth,” said Koonce. “Everybody plays hard, so it’s great to go against a starting offense and produce.”

What this means for Clelin Ferrel is less certain. The former top pick was injured most of camp and returned last week. In the practices since, and even before that, he was bounced around as the team tries to find a place where he can thrive, At this point it doesn’t look like that position exists.

The team might have held onto him regardless had they not been able to find production from anyone else. And it’s certainly possible they will hold onto Ferrell, if for no other reason than cutting him would come with a sizable amount of dead money left behind.

Most importantly, though, the play of Koonce and Bower could remove the part of the Ferrell dilemma that involves whether they have proper depth at defensive end.

Raiders Week 13 snap counts vs Washington: Rookies see most extensive playing time

Raiders Week 13 snap counts vs Washington: Rookies see most extensive playing time

Most of this season, the Raiders have relied heavily on a few of their rookies while the rest have barely seen the field. Sunday, those same players they’ve relied upon all season still played a lot of snaps, but they were joined by a couple of other rookies.

Third round rookies Malcolm Koonce and Divine Deablo both saw season highs in snaps.

Koonce made his debut, seeing his first snaps of the season. Koonce got the nod due to the injury to Carl Nassib. The rookie played 7 snaps and got a sack. He also played four snaps on special teams.

Deablo saw a season-high 38 defensive snaps plus 17 on special teams. He came into the game when Nicholas Morrow left with an injury. Prior to this game, Deablo had seen just 26 defensive snaps over the first 11 games combined.

Top two rookies G Alex Leatherwood and S Tre’von Moehrig both played every snap. While nickel CB Nate Hobbs played 49 snaps (73%).

OFFENSE Spec Tms
Player Pos Num Pct Num Pct
Kolton Miller T 59 100% 3 13%
Alex Leatherwood T 59 100% 3 13%
John Simpson G 59 100% 3 13%
Brandon Parker T 59 100% 3 13%
Derek Carr QB 59 100% 0 0%
Andre James C 59 100% 0 0%
Hunter Renfrow WR 54 92% 4 17%
Zay Jones WR 51 86% 0 0%
Foster Moreau TE 50 85% 7 30%
Josh Jacobs RB 50 85% 0 0%
Bryan Edwards WR 40 68% 0 0%
DeSean Jackson WR 24 41% 0 0%
Kenyan Drake RB 7 12% 1 4%
Sutton Smith FB 6 10% 9 39%
Peyton Barber RB 5 8% 3 13%
Jackson Barton T 3 5% 0 0%
Daniel Helm TE 2 3% 11 48%
Marcus Mariota QB 2 3% 0 0%
Nick Martin C 1 2% 3 13%
DEFENSE Spec Tms
Player Pos Num Pct Num Pct
Trevon Moehrig FS 67 100% 12 52%
Brandon Facyson CB 67 100% 8 35%
Johnathan Abram SS 67 100% 4 17%
Casey Hayward CB 67 100% 0 0%
Maxx Crosby DE 60 90% 3 13%
Yannick Ngakoue DE 54 81% 0 0%
Nate Hobbs CB 49 73% 8 35%
Denzel Perryman LB 47 70% 0 0%
Quinton Jefferson DT 45 67% 3 13%
Divine Deablo LB 38 57% 17 74%
Johnathan Hankins NT 37 55% 2 9%
K.J. Wright LB 35 52% 0 0%
Solomon Thomas DT 33 49% 3 13%
Cory Littleton LB 23 34% 12 52%
Damion Square NT 17 25% 1 4%
Clelin Ferrell DE 13 19% 8 35%
Dallin Leavitt FS 8 12% 20 87%
Malcolm Koonce DE 7 10% 4 17%
Marquel Lee LB 3 4% 19 83%
SPECIAL TEAMS Spec Tms
Player Pos Num Pct Num Pct
Keisean Nixon CB 0 0% 17 74%
Roderic Teamer CB 0 0% 17 74%
Nick Kwiatkoski LB 0 0% 8 35%
Daniel Carlson K 0 0% 8 35%
Matt Bushman TE 0 0% 8 35%
AJ Cole III P 0 0% 7 30%
Carson Tinker LS 0 0% 7 30%
Dillon Stoner WR 0 0% 4 17%
Jordan Simmons G 0 0% 3 13%

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Raiders Week 13 inactives vs Washington: Rookie DE Malcolm Koonce could make NFL debut

Raiders Week 13 inactives vs Washington: Rookie DE Malcolm Koonce could make NFL debut

We have yet to see Raiders third round rookie Malcolm Koonce take the field in an NFL game. Today could change all that. With DE Carl Nassib out with injury, Koonce is active and figures to see action for the first time.

This is just the second time Koonce has been active as a pro. He was active in week three against the Steelers, but didn’t play in the game. He’s been inactive every other game this season.

It’s somewhat rare for a third round pick to be a healthy scratch through the first 12 games of his career. For Koonce it has as much to do with numbers as anything. He’s simply behind four other players on the depth chart.

The starters at defensive end are Yannick Ngakoue and Maxx Crosby with Nassib and former 4th overall pick Clelin Ferrell coming off the bench. And with Nassib down, that opened the door for Koonce.

Raiders promising young LB Javin White carted off field with knee injury

Raiders promising young LB Javin White carted off field with knee injury

The second half of the Raiders preseason matchup with the Rams began with disaster. On the third play of the third quarter, both Malcolm Koonce and Javin White stayed down on the field with apparent leg injuries.

Koonce would eventually get up and make his way to the sideline, though limping over. He then attempted to jog off his injury several times, only to be sat down by trainers when he was unable to do so successfully. Trainers were looking at his left knee.

White stayed on the field longer. He too had a knee injury. But he was unable to get up or walk to the side on his own. Two defensive line teammates came out and put White’s arms over their shoulders and carried him to the side.

As they sat him on the trainer’s table, several concerned teammates came over to console him. After a brief time in the medical tent, a cart was brought out to take White off the field. He sat in the back of the cart sobbing with a towel over his head.

It appears his injury is a serious one, which is a real shame for White who was playing quite well, and had a real shot at cracking the roster, especially with the uncertainty surrounding the injury Nicholas Morrow suffered at Thursday’s scrimmage with the Rams.

Raiders training camp notebook 8/12: Malcolm Koonce working at LB

Raiders training camp notebook 8/12: Malcolm Koonce working at LB

Today was the final camp practice for the Raiders prior to their preseason opener against the Seahawks no Saturday. It will be interesting to see how the team deploys many of their new pieces on the field. Especially some of their rookies.

Both of the team’s third round picks came with some questions about where they would line up for the Raiders. Most notably was Divine Deablo who played safety at Virginia Tech but was selected to play linebacker for the Raiders. He has missed all of camp so far, but passed his physical Wednesday and is expected back soon.

The other third round pick was Malcolm Koonce who was at edge rusher at Buffalo and due to his size was projected as a 3-4 outside linebacker in the pros. The thing is, however, that the Raiders run a 4-3 base, which suggested he would be a defensive end for them.

Then this week Koonce has begun spending more time with the linebackers than he did the defensive linemen and has even been lining up at linebacker in team sessions. This started on Tuesday and continued today.

“Today was my first day playing some linebacker,” Koonce said after Tuesday’s practice. “It’s an I’m going to get in where I fit in type situation. Wherever Gus or the other coaches think I can be the most successful or help the team the most, throw me in there.”

So, the question becomes, is this a position change for Koonce or is it what they had plans for him all along? It could be either one.

It could be they’re testing him out at linebacker just to see what he can do. Not necessarily that he stays there. That’s what practice is for, right? It’s also very possible this was always the plan.

While Bradley is expected to run a 4-3 base, his defenses have 3-4 looks. He had great success with the likes of Melvin Ingram at pass rushing outside linebacker with the Chargers. And Koonce is almost the exact same size as Ingram, which means Bradley could have similar plans for him.

If Koonce can show up well in coverage, it increases his chances of seeing more snaps. They already like his pass rush abilities. That’s what he said is traditionally what coaches like in his game. Now it’s time to see if he has some hidden coverage abilities as well.

Raiders sign third-round DE Malcolm Koonce to get entire 2021 Draft class locked in

Raiders sign third-round DE Malcolm Koonce

With camp set to kick off early next week, this week ends with the Raiders finishing up getting their 2021 draft class under contract. Friday began with just their two third round picks yet to be signed. Minutes after they signed 80th overall pick LB Divine Deablo, they also officially signed 79th overall pick DE Malcolm Koonce.

The edge rusher from Buffalo signs a 4-year deal with $5 million with a cap hit of $908K this season. He is expected to compete immediately as a situational pass rusher, primarily on third and long situations.

Their entire class now under contract, here is what it looks like:

Round 1, pick 17 — OT Alex Leatherwood
Round 2, pick 43 — S Trevon Moehrig
Round 3, pick 79 — DE Malcolm Koonce
Round 3, pick 80 — LB Divine Deablo
Round 4, pick 143 — S Tyree Gillespee
Round 5, pick 167 — CB Nate Hobbs
Round 7, pick 230 — C Jimmy Morrissey

All are signed to four-year deals, with first round pick Alex Leatherwood having a fifth-year option.

Only the picks through the third round currently count against the 2021 salary cap. The other three picks fall below the top 51 and thus don’t count against the total cap number.

Mel Kiper throws the Lions a serious 2-round curveball in his latest mock

Kiper projects his own 26th-ranked DE to the Lions as the No. 41 overall pick

Perhaps the most well-known NFL draft analyst, Mel Kiper Jr. from ESPN is always provocative. In his latest mock draft, Kiper took the provocation to a new level for Detroit Lions fans with his second-round projection for the team.

Kiper colored within the lines with his first Lions pick. At No. 7 overall he projected LSU WR Ja’Marr Chase. While it might not happen, Chase is certainly a plausible candidate worthy of strong consideration by Lions GM Brad Holmes at that spot.

Then came the second round. Kiper went way off the beaten path to project Buffalo EDGE Malcolm Koonce to the Lions with the No. 41 overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft.

Here’s what Kiper had to say about Koonce,

Koonce is a natural pass-rusher who had 14 sacks over the past two seasons. He has great length and can be disruptive as a situational edge defender. He’s being underrated in the lead-up to this draft, but I love his tape.

Despite Kiper’s optimism, it’s a massive reach by draft standards. Koonce is the No. 33 EDGE defender in the rankings from The Athletic’s Dane Brugler. He’s the No. 166 overall player in The Draft Network’s current big board. Perhaps most condemning, Kiper’s own network at ESPN ranks Koonce as the 26th-best defensive end prospect in the draft.

I included Koonce as the seventh-round prospect in a “pass rusher for every round” piece at Browns Wire over the weekend. That seems more like the range where Koonce will be drafted, but crazy things certainly do happen in draft season.

Browns 2021 draft: A pass rusher for every round

Here is a pass rushing prospect for the Browns draft spot (before trades) for each of the draft’s seven rounds

One of the biggest remaining holes on the Cleveland Browns roster after the first couple of weeks of free agency is the starting DE/EDGE spot opposite Myles Garrett. The team signed Takk McKinley and Malik Jackson as veteran additions, but neither should prevent GM Andrew Berry and the Browns from finding a more permanent solution to replace Olivier Vernon in the starting defensive lineup.

The 2021 NFL draft offers scores of different options. It’s not a top-heavy class, but with the Browns not picking anywhere near the top of the draft, that’s just fine.

Here is a pass rushing prospect for the Browns draft spot (before trades) for each of the draft’s seven rounds, with an eye for fit in Cleveland and how we expect Joe Woods’ defense to operate.