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Kolton Miller already a student of the Raiders’ game. ‘I take it very seriously’

By Joe Davidson jdavidson@sacbee.com


Kolton Miller is still a student.

His Roseville High School days are long past, and his UCLA classroom experiences are fading in the rear-view mirror, but Miller still takes daily notes, hauls a backpack and studies.

Man, does he study.

The Raiders first-round draft pick pores over the Oakland playbook at any opportunity. When he wakes up in the Marriott next to the Raiders facility in Alameda at 6 a.m., he peeks at the pages of formations. He references the book throughout meetings, and after conditioning drills, and during meals, and before bed.

Knowledge, the old saying goes, is power, and this 6-foot-9, 310-pound tackle vows to be ready – mind and body – come minicamp in June and training camp in July.

"I'm spending as much time as I can with that playbook," Miller said this week. "I take it very seriously."

Does he feel pressure as the top pick, billed as the future protector of franchise cornerstone quarterback Derek Carr? Of course, but he admits so in measured tones.

"There's pressure to do well, yes," said Miller, whose signing was announced Friday. "Everyone feels pressure right now. It's a process, and right now for me, it's learning the playbook. This is prep work. This is learning. You really don't earn your playing spot until training camp. The weight isn't bearing down on me right now."

Miller said he has not paid attention to fans who went to social media to bemoan the Raiders going with a tackle instead of a defensive player. The Raiders already have an established left tackle in Donald Penn, but the three-time Pro Bowler has endured injuries.

Shortly after the Raiders selected Miller, Penn tweeted, "MORE MOTIVATION." The post has since been deleted.

Newest Oakland Raider Kolton Miller 'ready to get started' with new coach Jon Gruden
Offensive tackle Kolton Miller, whom the Raiders took 15th overall in the 2018 NFL Draft, said he's "ready to get started" with his new team. Paul Moseley/Star-Telegram

Explained Raiders coach Jon Gruden during Miller's introductory news conference, "Donald Penn is still on our football team and he’s still rehabbing his foot injury. Donald has been a very good player for the Raiders, a guy that I coached in Tampa, know extremely well. This has nothing to do with Donald Penn.

"This is about the future of the Oakland Raiders. We have an outstanding young quarterback. We have a need at the position and we were fortunate to address it, but it doesn’t really say anything to Donald Penn.”

He said Miller has the versatility to play right or left tackle.

“He’s got a huge upside at a position that’s very hard to find, and in the AFC West right now, the people that you have to block, Kolton, I hate to break it to you, but they’re pretty good," Gruden said.

Raiders line coach Tom Cable was high on Miller leading up to the draft. He instructed Miller to work on certain techniques this spring, and last week when rookies were free from team obligations, Miller sought out a familiar mentor.

Miller worked with Jon Osterhout, the American River College coach and director of the Linemen Win Games camp, which Miller has been involved in since his sophomore year at Roseville.

Miller has become so close to Osterhout that he invited him to the NFL draft green room in Dallas. He also invited his Roseville coach, Larry Cunha. The coaches accepted.

"I worked with Jon one-on-one on some of the things Cable wanted me to address, and it's always good to have someone you really appreciate and trust," Miller said.

Said Osterhout, "Kolton's already a consummate pro. It's part of his DNA, that lunch-pail mentality. There's a bond and connection we have, and I was glad to work with him.

"He's a sponge, and he's a grinder in every regard. He's very diligent and very process-based on how to create the best version of himself. It's that simple. He's organized and detailed and has a plan for everything, and he does it with tremendous intention. What you see is what you truly get. He's locked in."

Osterhout laughed when reminded he told The Bee before the draft he would be surprised if Miller slipped past No. 15. He landed at 15.

"Isn't that unbelievable, No. 15?" Osterhout said. "He has all the intangibles, and he's a tremendous football player. These guys don't drop out of trees with sheer size and athleticism and want and desire. Guys get paid a lot of money in the NFL to not miss on picks. Oakland got a guy for the long term."

Miller said he is still numb over where he landed.

"I was just so happy to get drafted where I got drafted, and to have my family and coaches and friends to be so close to here – it's amazing," Miller said. "I'm two hours away from home, with a little bit of traffic, so it's awesome."

Miller's father, Dan, has a lot of friends who are Raiders fans. They're already plotting trips to training camp in Napa and home games.

Miller's mother, Karrie, had co-workers surprise her by remaking her desk with Raiders garb and a photo of Miller holding the No. 1 Raiders jersey. Miller said he is especially excited for his 16-year-old brother Chad, a Roseville student who treasures his brother's jersey handed out after the pick.

"Chad is a star at Roseville right now," Miller said of his brother who has Moebius syndrome, a rare neurological condition that mainly restricts facial expressions and eye movement. "He's got the Raiders gear going. Everyone is hitting him up at school, saying, 'Oh, wow! Saw you on TV!' He's living good right now."

Same for older brother, too.
 
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Osterhout laughed when reminded he told The Bee before the draft he would be surprised if Miller slipped past No. 15. He landed at 15.

"Isn't that unbelievable, No. 15?" Osterhout said. "He has all the intangibles, and he's a tremendous football player. These guys don't drop out of trees with sheer size and athleticism and want and desire. Guys get paid a lot of money in the NFL to not miss on picks. Oakland got aguy for the long term."


Raiders could trade down, take Miller
If the Raiders do in fact trade down from the 10th overall pick -- with someone like New England or Arizona or whoever coming up for a quarterback -- look out for UCLA tackle Kolton Miller to be a top target for them. Problem is, they might not be able to move back far at all and still get him. I continue to hear from evaluators and offensive line coaches I most trust that Miller, and not Notre Dame's Mike McGlinchey, is the best tackle in the draft. Miller has the potential to be an elite left tackle with tremendous feet on a 6-foot-9 frame. There is too much potential to ignore. Plenty of teams in the teens have their eye on him. McGlinchey, from what I gather, is much more likely to go in the late-teens to early-20s. Not sure Miller makes it past Detroit, where he could start on the right side if need be, where he played at UCLA before moving over.

Jason la canfora
 
andana said:
Been a lot written about us reaching for Miller but there are too many self appointed experts who focus on the ' weaknesses' section in a mock draft/draft evaluation.
Click to expand...

Correct.

Really looking forward to training camp because that's when we'll have a much better idea of how our new draft picks on the lines are going to fit in. The next few weeks of OTAs should be a bit of fun to see how dialled in Carr is with his new receivers and the offense in general.
 

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That's going to be bad if it's another wasted pick. You can see why Gruden likes to bring in experienced players.

Here's some experts predraft.


Melifonwu could rise throughout the leadup to the 2017 NFL Draft, and it wouldn't be surprising if he ends up turning into a good NFL starter with Pro Bowl potential given his
Obi Melifonwu is arguably the best athlete in the 2017 NFL Draft. His metrics are world class across the board, and the versatile defensive back is less than a week away
 
Jon Gruden was on a conference call with Raider season ticket holders today. Here's the full call:

Additionally, I'll be on CBS Radio 1140am Las Vegas this weekend getting interviewed about the Raiders strength and conditioning program, Amari Cooper and more Raider tidbits.
 
Las Vegas Stadium Authority Chairman Steve Hill vowed Wednesday to make upcoming board meetings as boring as possible.

The reason: Meetings that are boring mean everything is running smoothly and as planned.

Hill and company didn’t disappoint Wednesday. In just under two hours, the board unanimously approved a $546.3 million budget for the 2018-19 fiscal year and a collection of amended agreements designed to better account for funding of the $1.8 billion, 65,000-seat indoor stadium under construction at Interstate 15 and Russell Road.

Personal seat license amendments

Board members also unanimously approved amendments to the authority’s personal seat license agreement with the Raiders and a modification to the stadium construction budget clarifying that an additional $40 million is being dedicated to the team’s premium seating and marketing plan. The cost of the stadium won’t change — just the accounting.

So far the Raiders have spent $172.4 million, 19 percent of the team’s commitment, on the stadium project. Another $43.6 million, or 22 percent of the total commitment, has been paid by the NFL’s G-4 loan program, and $30.6 million, or 4 percent, of the public’s $750 million contribution has been spent to date.

The $1.8 billion cost of the stadium does not include required off-site parking, a parking shuttle system or the NFL relocation fee the team must pay for leaving Oakland.
 
Doug Martin has ‘looked great’, appears to be strong favorite to share Raiders backfield with Marshawn Lynch

By Levi Damien on May 24, 2018 3:45 pm

It’s early yet, but even in that early going, Doug Martin appears to already have a stranglehold on a running back spot on the Raiders roster.

The 7th year running back came to the Raiders on a friendly free agent deal this offseason. Despite joining a group of backs who all have experience with the Raiders, Martin is already establishing himself and is firmly in Jon Gruden’s good graces.

“We’re also very pleased with Doug Martin,” said Gruden Wednesday over conference call with season ticket holders.

“A lot of people may have fallen asleep on Doug Martin,” Gruden continued. “He’s a two-time All Pro back, he had almost 1500 yards in two different seasons. He has not looked good here, he has looked great.”
 
Raiders strength and conditioning pioneer Tom Shaw sets the tone for Jon Gruden (and is making Jordy Nelson faster)

By Vic Tafur 3h ago 3

Jon Gruden’s voice carries over the practice field in Alameda, but the Raiders coach’s shadow looms larger.

The shadow not only sees who is in shape, but who is working hard to get in better shape. The shadow has a plan for every player, but also is an observer, seeing which veterans are coasting and which are helping younger players.

The NFL weight room is the ground floor for team building — “the mental toughness (and) camaraderie starts down there,” Gruden said — and the shadow, or Tom Shaw, the Raiders strength and conditioning coach, makes sure the players are grinding.

“We have a great bunch of guys,” Shaw said Wednesday in his weight-room office. “I have been impressed. There are no turds. We brought in a lot of new guys and everyone is competing hard. We are going to cut some good players in August, guys who will be on the street for about 30 minutes.”

When Gruden was hired (again) in January, he said adding Shaw was a priority. Just like owner Mark Davis had pursued Gruden for a long time, Gruden’s courtship of Shaw was not a quick slam-dunk.

After all, Shaw, 59, had his own little empire going at Disney World. Shaw had won three Super Bowl rings as a strength and conditioning assistant with the Patriots but left the NFL in 2006 because he had the need.

The need for speed.

“I left for good, I was never coming back,” Shaw said.

Shaw is a renowned speed coach who has trained the top NFL prospects for 25-plus years, the last 11 in Orlando. Shaw’s Performance Enhancement Camp at the 220-acre ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Disney World has been hallowed ground for 153 first-round picks (and 10 of the last 15 Super Bowl MVPs).

Seven of the top 10 40-yard dash runners in NFL scouting combine history were trained by Shaw, one of the pioneers in what is now a ridiculously crowded field of combine trainers.

So, what is he doing here, at the Raiders facility?

“I came back to help Jon win,” Shaw said. “Like I said, I am just a shadow. I am just here to help him fulfill his dream. He wants to win.”

Shaw started working with Gruden when the former coach brought in quarterbacks for his “QB Camp” TV series on ESPN. Shaw supplied the receivers, running backs and defensive players, and they would train together.

“Jon got a chance to see how we work with the athletes,” Shaw said. “And he kept coming around even when the show wasn’t filming, Three years ago he asked me if I was interested in getting back in and I said, no, I wasn’t.”

Gruden was putting together his dream staff, assistants who would be ready to jump when he finally sent out the Bat signal that he was returning to coaching.

Gruden kept working on Shaw, who was the top guy on his list, over even the coordinators.

“Six years with the New England Patriots,” Gruden said. “He was with Bobby Bowden in the glory years at Florida State. He was with the New Orleans Saints. What I saw down there from him, the way he was handling young players, veteran players, major league baseball players, that was something I wanted.

“He was my No. 1 hire. That guy touches the whole roster, all the time.”

Gruden knew he would get his guy. And he did, not only because of his persuasiveness but also because of how much Gruden reminded Shaw of someone else.

“His passion for the game is like Bill Belichick’s,” Shaw said. “Everyone wants to win, but it’s the guys that are dedicated and put the time in … this is, truly, their life. Football is the passion of Jon’s life and Belichick is the exact same way. It’s the most important thing in his life.

“I see now that he is doing other things, but I never saw Belichick do anything else. Jon is that guy, in everyday at 4:15 in the morning, breaking down film.”

Shaw and his staff are also in the office until after the sun goes to bed most nights, and it is a family affair. Shaw’s daughter, Kelsey Martinez, and Gruden’s son, Deuce — more on his growing legend later — joined D’Anthony Batiste and Rick Slate on Shaw’s staff and put the players to the test.

“They have done a great job setting the tone,” linebacker Tahir Whitehead said. “Getting everybody ready for practice, knowing what the coaches want and expect of us, planning for the season. Everyone is pushing in the right direction.”

The strength coach has become even more important thanks (or no thanks) to the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Gruden can’t talk to his players in large portions of the offseason. And even in the first two weeks of spring, when the players come back to the facility, they can only be there for four hours a day, four days a week — and the coaches aren’t allowed on the field with them.

Gruden took 45 minutes of that four hours for classroom time with the players, and gave Shaw the remaining three hours and 15 minutes.

“I was truly blessed for him to allow me that much time, because on most teams, it’s the other way around, I would get 45 minutes,” Shaw said. “Most teams have their guys lift and then run as fast as you can, and that’s it.”

Shaw and his staff had the players lift for the first hour and 15 minutes, and then do field work (two days a week on cutting, one on straight speed work and one on football conditioning). He has enlarged the sand pit and made the players run the streets of Alameda for two miles, and is introducing the rookies to Pilates soon.

A receiver and track star in his day at Central Michigan University, Shaw took his master’s degree in exercise science and became a speed coach at Florida State (and worked with Deion Sanders). Then, with the Saints and Patriots, Shaw developed a lot of his strength and speed program from his mentor and now Cowboys strength and conditioning coordinator Mike Woicik.

(Fun trivia: Woicik and Shaw gave former Raiders coach Jack Del Rio his first coaching job, as an assistant strength coach in New Orleans in 1997.)

(More fun trivia: Shaw has not only worked with seven current Raiders players at his camp, including Carr, Khalil Mack and Bruce Irvin, but also trained the fathers of Raiders players Mario Edwards Jr. and Maurice Hurst.)

For years, Shaw has told his athletes to “relax and run fast,” with no straining or extra movements and longer strides. And his methods get result with not only young players, but older ones as well.

Shaw said that 32-year-old Jordy Nelson is already faster than when he arrived here in March. Many critics thought Nelson was shot after knee surgery two years ago, but Shaw said Nelson actually had the fastest time when he recently put a radar speed sign on the practice field.

“Jordy has been doing everything I have asked him to do, it’s been pretty impressive,” Shaw said. “Nelson and Martavis Bryant are workaholics for me, they and Amari Cooper are the bellcows.”

Nelson said veteran players have to be constantly aware they are setting an example.

“I think if a young guy watches a veteran guy go about his day,” Nelson said, “if it’s in the meeting room. If it’s in the weight room. If it’s the way he recovers and prepares for a game or the way he practices. That will have more impact than me just sitting there and saying a bunch of stuff.”

Some of the players did need some initial prodding.

“We had five offensive linemen who were between 30 and 40 pounds heavier than when they left the facility last season,” Shaw said. “They were eating whatever they wanted and were doing nothing. … It’s $665 per pound per practice, and we can fine them twice a week so that’s 12 grand if you’re 10 pounds over. I could buy a new truck.”

Shaw blames the CBA. And the players. But mostly the CBA for putting such extreme limitations on how much time young players can spend at the team facility.

“The CBA was made by older veterans who only cared about themselves,” Shaw said. “The CBA kills the players. When I was with the Patriots, we had the kids for five months during the offseason. They would work three weeks and then be off one.

“Kids had a chance to develop. Now, they don’t. Besides the pay, the CBA is a bad deal because kids can only use the team facility as a Gold’s Gym during the offseason. We can’t go on the field with them, and you can’t involve a football. It would be like in Silicon Valley, telling your employees you can come in but you can’t use your computer. But owners don’t want to pay the rookies or for their housing.”

Luckily, Shaw has the right staff to get the Raiders players up to speed.

Martinez, his daughter, is the NFL’s second female strength and conditioning coach (the first was Lee Brandon, with the Jets in 1988-89). Martinez worked at the Tom Shaw Performance Camp at Disney, and was in charge of the baseball program (30 players trained there, including major leaguers Carlos Correa, Francisco Lindor, Carlos Gonzalez, Martin Prado and Ender Inciarte).

“I couldn’t run my program without her,” Shaw said. “She builds weightlifting cards, does a lot of the computer stuff and also spots guys and works with the guys.”

Shaw adopted Martinez when her father passed away and said it’s been “really cool” to share this passion with her.

Martinez earned her way, as did Deuce Gruden, who worked on the Redskins staff for three years.

“Deuce is not just the head coach’s son,” Shaw said. “Deuce is a gold medalist in power lifting. There is no one on this team who is as strong as Deuce Gruden.”

When the players see the 5-foot-5 Gruden squat 405 pounds, “they’re pretty impressed,” Shaw said.

Do like Deuce.

The players lift with their upper body Monday and Thursday, with their lower body Tuesday and Friday and they have go up five pounds every lift — curls, biceps, triceps, chest, etc. — every week.

And Gruden and Shaw have been pleased with players actually wanting to hit the weight room thus far.

“We can change the culture here or the culture will change us,” Shaw said. “We have to make the players understand there is a rhyme and a reason to what we’re doing, and we need maximum effort. There are only so many great players. We have to help the good players get better, and we have to change the culture here that everyone here can play. Instead of just a select few.”

— Reported from Alameda
 
Raiders coach Jon Gruden praised UDFA K Eddy Pineiro's performance at OTAs.

"We watched him kick today and he made every one," said Gruden, who said the Raiders considered drafting Pineiro in the seventh round. Fifth-round punter Johnny Townsend, Pineiro's teammate at the University of Florida, has held for him at OTAs. Gruden believes Pineiro and Giorgio Tavecchio will have a "great battle" in training camp. Tavecchio is on notice after making just 16-of-21 field goals last season.

Source: Vic Tafur on Twitter
 
What we learned about the Raiders from the start of 2018 OTAs

By JEFF SMITH 6 hours ago

As of Thursday afternoon, the Oakland Raiders are now officially through the first stretch of OTAs ahead of the 2018 season under head coach Jon Gruden. While just one of the practices was open to the media, there were still plenty of quotes and comments made which revealed quite a bit during the early stages of offseason practices.

For Gruden and the rest of the coaching staff, they seemingly wasted no time getting right to work and putting their 90-man roster to various tests. Specifically, we saw the coach make a few moves after just one or two days of action, which we'll touch on a bit more momentarily.

The Raiders made some huge changes this offseason, as Gruden and the front office essentially overhauled the roster. They added over 25 new faces between free agency and the NFL draft. Chucky also proved quickly that he cares very little what outsiders think about the moves he's making and also that he's going to stick to doing what he wants in order to build the exact roster he wants.

From the five free-agent cornerbacks who signed one-year deals to the two offensive tackles selected in the first three picks of the draft, this group of players is going to have Gruden's fingerprints all over it.

The question now becomes, how quickly can the new faces mesh and have success on the field? Based on offensive talent alone, it's hard to argue that the Silver and Black shouldn't find the success early on in 2018.

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GRUDEN WANTS A FULL-BLOWN QUARTERBACK COMPETITION BEHIND DEREK CARR

(Photo: www.raiders.com)
First, we had Connor Cook receiving snaps ahead of EJ Manuel during Tuesday's practice, which was surprising enough. Then, the Raiders struck a trade with the New York Jets for Christian Hackenberg, who unquestionably has some work to do as an NFL quarterback.

But it became wildly apparent that Gruden wants to see his quarterbacks duke it out for the No. 2 and 3 jobs this offseason. Plus, he surely wants to get some time to work with Hackenberg, a player he was seemingly high on ahead of the 2016 NFL Draft.

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MAURICE HURST IS GOING TO GET A CHANCE FOR MAJOR PLAYING TIME

As Ted Nguyen of The Athletic revealed, rookie fifth-round pick DT Maurice Hurst received some work right out of the gate with the first-team defense during the first OTA session. This also resulted in second-round pick DT PJ Hall working with the third group, it seems.

Hurst is oozing with talent, but that's never been the question. Assuming everything checks out with his heart condition (which all reports state it has), the former Michigan star could wind up being a starter from day one for the Raiders.

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GRUDEN REALLY LIKES GAREON CONLEY

Gareon Conley's pure talent was never in question last season, but some did question his durability, which was somewhat unfair. A shin injury sidelined him for almost the entire season, but he enters this offseason as the No. 1 cornerback for the Raiders. And as Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal revealed, Gruden is a pretty big fan of the second-year cornerback.

“Conley is special. He was a top pick in the draft for a reason.” Gruden told Gehlken.

Expect Conley to be the clear-cut top corner for the team in 2018.

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BUT HE SEEMS REALLY DOWN ON OBI MELIFONWU

Unfortunately for 2017 second-round pick safety Obi Melifonwu, he's not getting the same rave reviews as Conley from his coach. He's actually getting just the opposite at this point.

As Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal quoted, Gruden was completely down on Melifonwu at this point when asked how close the young safety who's dealing with a hip injury is to being back fully.

“He doesn’t look close to me at all. I’ll leave it at that. He doesn’t look close to me at all.” Not 100 percent. “Haven’t seen much of Obi, except in the training room.” Gehlken stated.

I think Melifonwu has some work to do to impress his new coach.

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DOUG MARTIN HAS SOMETHING LEFT IN THE TANK

While Marshawn Lynch is going to be the clear-cut No. 1 running back in the Raiders backfield, apparently, Gruden's infatuation with Doug Martin isn't cooling off anytime soon.

As SB Nation's Levi Damien revealed, the coach answered a question about Martin on a conference call Thursday and simply raved about the veteran back.

“We’re also very pleased with Doug Martin,” said Gruden Wednesday over conference call with season ticket holders.

“A lot of people may have fallen asleep on Doug Martin,” Gruden continued. “He’s a two-time All Pro back, he had almost 1500 yards in two different seasons. He has not looked good here, he has looked great.”

I don't think Lynch has any reason to be worried about his role, but both Jalen Richard and DeAndre Washington could find themselves in the middle of a crucial training camp battle for the No. 3 running back job it seems.

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THE RAIDERS AREN'T RUSHING THEIR ROOKIE LINEMEN, AND DONALD PENN IS WILLING TO HELP

During the opening day of OTAs, Gruden had some praise for rookie offensive tackles Kolton Miller and Brandon Parker, but for the most part, they worked with the reserves. As Michael Gehlken also revealed it was David Sharpe and Bren Giacomini who got the bulk of the work with the starters as Donald Penn was eased back into things.

But, Penn didn't shy away from helping out the young guys, it seems. While there's been a lot of drama about Miller potentially taking over the left tackle job, that doesn't seem like it'll be the case. In turn, the team posted a photo, which Penn tweeted out, of him working with Parker during practice.

This is pretty cool to see, and hopefully, it can continue on through the offseason. Obviously, Penn is 35 years old and won't be around forever, so the more info he can pass along to the young guys, the better it is for their future.

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AMARI COOPER, JORDY NELSON AND MARTAVIS BRYANT WILL LINE UP ALL OVER

There have been rumblings about Amari Cooper lining up in the slot and Martavis Bryant lining up on the outside, which really shouldn't be overly surprising. Cooper has had plenty of success out of the slot in his career, and it seems that Gruden and offensive coordinator Greg Olson are going to look to utilize their three top pass-catchers in various ways.

Regardless, any time the trio are all on the field is a good thing, as each can benefit from what the other two bring to the table. Bryant's speed, specifically, could wind up being a game changer for Cooper and Nelson.

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GRUDEN ISN'T MESSING AROUND WHEN IT COMES TO THE ROSTER

If a player isn't performing, Gruden isn't going to give them long to prove that they are capable of actually competing at a high level it seems. We've already seen multiple players get released after rookie camp and offseason practices, and cornerback Senquez Golson was just released on Wednesday as well.

Golson was one of five free-agent cornerbacks who signed a one-year deal with the Raiders. Expect the coaching staff to make snap decisions on the roster, especially since they have quite a few options at the main positions where competitions are happening.

==========================

We're now officially through the first week of OTAs and the Oakland Raiders made a few headlines. While there was plenty talked about on the actual field, Jon Gruden and company also made waves by trading for a new quarterback after the very first day of OTAs.

Christian Hackenberg was brought to town in a deal with the New York Jets earlier this week, but he didn't do quite enough (since the final two days weren't open to the media) to qualify for this list. But, what I will say is that Gruden is seemingly going to give Hackenberg a legitimate chance to battle for a roster spot.

With that said, we aren't here to dive fully into the career of the Raiders' new quarterback, but instead to talk about the players who grabbed early attention during OTAs. Unfortunately, there was only so much information to take in, but that doesn't mean we didn't get to see a few players make headlines. More importantly, Gruden and the rest of the coaching staff hasn't shied away from talking about players who are excelling (or struggling for that matter).

So, let's jump into it by checking out the eight names who impressed over the first week of OTAs. And for those curious, there are two weeks remaining of OTAs, with the first being from May 29-31 and the second coming on June 4-7. From there, the Raiders have mandatory minicamp on June 12-14 and then the break before training camp and the preseason officially begins.

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GAREON CONLEY, CORNERBACK

To this point in the offseason, there's been no single player who's brought as much positive attention to himself as second-year cornerback Gareon Conley. While nothing overly insane has happened, Raiders fans are just incredibly hopeful that the team's 2017 first-round pick will be able to thrive this season after battling injuries all last year.

And based on Gruden's recent comments to Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, he's already doing quite a bit of impressing.

“Conley is special. He was a top pick in the draft for a reason.” Gruden stated.

There's a lot to love about Conley's game, and if he stays healthy, he's not only going to be the team's No. 1 cornerback this season, but he could very well be the cornerstone of the secondary for years to come.

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DOUG MARTIN, RUNNING BACK

When the Raiders signed Doug Martin, it was an interesting move, but nothing much more than that. After all, he is pushing 30 years old and has had an up-and-down career. But, Gruden seemingly fell in love with what Martin may be able to bring to the offense and signed him very early on in the offseason.

Now, the coach is wasting no time raving about his new running back. While it's unlikely that Martin will take too much work from Marshawn Lynch, SB Nation's Levi Damien revealed eye-opening quotes Gruden made on a conference call about the former Tampa Bay Buccaneers back.

“We’re also very pleased with Doug Martin,” said Gruden Wednesday over conference call with season ticket holders.

“A lot of people may have fallen asleep on Doug Martin,” Gruden continued. “He’s a two-time All Pro back, he had almost 1500 yards in two different seasons. He has not looked good here, he has looked great.”

This is good news for the team, but not so great for either Jalen Richard or DeAndre Washington, as one of the two could wind up losing their spot on the 53-man roster this offseason at the hands of Martin.

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JORDY NELSON, WIDE RECEIVER

The reviews on Jordy Nelson have been beautiful to read since the moment he signed with the Silver and Black. One of the most interesting reports I've heard thus far, though, came from The Athletic's Vic Tafur, who revealed that Raiders strength and conditioning coach Tom Shaw actually said Nelson is faster than when he arrived.

Shaw also called Nelson a workaholic, along with Martavis Bryant, according to Tafur.

“Jordy has been doing everything I have asked him to do, it’s been pretty impressive,” Shaw said. “Nelson and Martavis Bryant are workaholics for me, they and Amari Cooper are the bellcows.”

The excitement surrounding Nelson is high and as NFL Network's Peter Schrager stated just before OTAs, the veteran has been a "quarterback in the wide receivers room" this offseason.

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MAURICE HURST, DEFENSIVE TACKLE

To be clear, it takes a pretty special and impressive player to fall to the fifth round of the NFL draft (regardless of the situation) and come in on day one to work with the first-unit right out of the gate.

As The Athletic's Ted Nguyen revealed, this was exactly the case for Hurst, as he worked between the first and second teams, while second-round pick DT PJ Hall was working with the next group after that.

The way things stand currently, it wouldn't be surprising to see Hurst start right away in 2018.

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DEREK CARR, QUARTERBACK

This really shouldn't be all that surprising. Most believed Derek Carr and Gruden would mesh early on, assuming Carr picked up his offense and bought into his coaching style. Well, the young quarterback has done just that, and as Raiders Beat revealed, Gruden even went as far as comparing Carr to Peyton Manning on a conference call this week.

“When Derek was at Fresno State, he called his own plays a lot of the time at the line of scrimmage in a no-huddle offense so he’s very good at recognizing coverages, recognizing blitzes.

We’ve been working extremely hard at empowering him to play a little bit like Peyton Manning played. Get us into the best run possible, get us into the best pass play possible." Gruden stated.

It's certainly good to hear and goes along with the rumblings that Carr has had no problem adjusting to what Gruden is throwing at him throughout the early stages of OTAs.

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GRIFF WHALEN, WIDE RECEIVER

To be honest, I didn't really expect that I'd be putting Griff Whalen's name on this list at any point during OTAs, but specifically not right out of the gate. That's nothing against Whalen, but more a tip of the cap to the fact that this roster has quite a few intriguing and talented wideouts who were expected to get the bulk of the attention.

But, after SB Nation's Levi Damien pointed out that Whalen was showing solid hands during day one of OTAs, he had my attention. To piggyback off that, The Athletic's Vic Tafur stated that the wideout (along with Dwayne Harris) made a couple of nice catches and "showed some explosiveness." Whalen has an uphill battle to make the roster, but he's getting attention.

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DONALD PENN, OFFENSIVE TACKLE

Honestly, I didn't put veteran Donald Penn on this list for anything relating to his actual play. Instead, I was impressed by the fact that he hit the practice field, showing his rehab from a season-ending foot injury is ahead of schedule. More importantly, I loved the fact that he was seemingly willing to help out the young offensive tackles who were selected early in the 2018 NFL Draft.

The team's official Twitter revealed the photo you see above, and while some may argue that it's just one picture, it's not like these guys have time to stand around and pose for the most part. That'd be third-round pick Brandon Parker working with Penn, and the veteran even tweeted the photo out after practice as well.

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KOLTON MILLER, OFFENSIVE TACKLE

Speaking of rookie offensive tackles, there's been nothing but positive reviews coming in about first-round pick Kolton Miller. He may not have had the most amazing start to OTAs, but he did enough and there were enough rumblings about him to get some excitement brewing.

We originally had Gruden calling Miller one of the "most athletic tackles he's ever seen," as Kyle Martin of the team's official website revealed. And to follow that up, there was SB Nation's Levi Damien stating that watching Shilique Calhoun attempt to get past Miller was "comical" during practice.

The rookie from UCLA is obviously doing something right.

====================

In the same week that many NFL teams began OTAs ahead of the 2018 season, another topic has taken center stage in the national media.

That would be the hot-button conversation about the national anthem and how the NFL will handle players potentially kneeling or sitting during it in the coming seasons. While the 2017 season began with a wide range of players kneeling before games during the anthem, it did seem to slow down quite a bit as the year rolled on.

But on Thursday, the NFL made a big decision when laying down a new policy which will keep any player from publicly kneeling or sitting during the national anthem. As ESPN's Seth Wickersham originally revealed, commissioner Roger Goodell stated that the vote was "unanimous" among the owners, but apparently, that wasn't exactly the case.

Per the same ESPN report, both Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis and San Francisco 49ers owner Jed York stated they abstained from the vote. Wickersham also revealed that it wasn't an actual vote, but instead featured the league calling for a show of hands from the owners in support of the policy.

Davis reportedly stated that he opted to abstain from the vote because he "wanted to speak with his players first before going public with his rationale," following that statement up later by saying he has not changed his mind on the topic.

As far as the new policy that's now in place goes, it will require players to either stand on the field for the national anthem or stay in the locker room during it if they choose to do so. If this new rule is not followed by players and/or personnel, teams can be fined by the league.

It's an interesting situation across the board, specifically the fact that Goodell opted to state that the vote was unanimous when it clearly wasn't.

Davis hasn't shied away from addressing the topic and how he's handled it when speaking with the Raiders players in the past. He previously revealed earlier in the season that he had spoken with both Kahlil Mack and Derek Carr a year or so prior, stating that he would prefer they not protest while in Raiders uniform.

At the time those comments were made, though, the team's owner admitted that he could no longer ask his team "to not say something" in a Raiders uniform, but instead to do it "with class" should they opt to, as ESPN quoted.

It seems as though the new policy is in place and likely will not be changing moving forward, but Davis and York's admissions soon after are certainly eye-opening.
 
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