Prior to joining The Athletic’s coverage of the San Francisco 49ers in April, Vic Tafur covered the Raiders in Oakland and Las Vegas for 15 years.
Tafur has been reporting on the 49ers for four months and he joined his former podcast crew on Thursday to discuss the joint practices between the Niners and Raiders.
Tafur was asked if he has noticed any obvious differences in the organizations since covering the 49ers, and he pointed to leadership among the players as something that stands out.
“The biggest thing I’ve noticed is that with the Niners, there’s probably six or seven really strong veteran leaders on the team,” Tafur said of the 49ers on the Just Win podcast. “There’s a clear higher echelon of guys who not only are great players, but also really are ‘follow me’ kind of guys, young players can build off of them when they watch them and listen to them.”
“Every practice is definitely run at a pretty high level. I think the Raiders in the past have not had that level, a number of guys really raise the bar. I think that’s been a big thing I’ve noticed.”
The culture in Las Vegas is said to be shifting under Pete Carroll, and every indication is that Geno Smith has filled some of the leadership void since joining the Raiders in March. At minimum, there are more experienced leaders in the building than they did a year ago.
Tafur also acknowledged a handful of “great” players on the 49er roster and it’s fair to say the list of “great” players on the Raiders’ roster doesn’t extend far beyond Maxx Crosby and Brock Bowers. Smith might eventually join the list but still has a lot to prove in his NFL career.
The Raiders host the 49ers on Saturday at Allegiant Stadium, and there is a good chance this will be the last chance to see the Raiders’ starters until the season opener.
While the offensive line in Vegas was a positive development in their first joint practice, the Raiders still have a lot to sort out in their secondary.
“The safeties had their problems — Juszczyk beat Isaiah Pola-Mao for a long touchdown — but the cornerbacks were a bigger issue. The Raiders rotated Eric Stokes, Darien Porter, Decamerion Richardson and Kyu Blu Kelly with the starters. None of them stood out in a positive way,” The Athletic’s Tashan Reed reported on Thursday evening.
“At nickel back, it was mostly Darnay Holmes or safety Jeremy Chinn when he wasn’t working from the box. Overall, the secondary had too many breakdowns in coverage and rarely made plays on the ball. They’ll need to step it up to avoid a repeat Saturday.”
x: @raidersbeat