Diving Into Raiders’ Linebackers Coach Richard Smith
As the season inches closer, we here at Sports Illustrated’s Raider Maven take a deep dive into the Silver and Black coaching staff.
Serving under new defensive coordinator Gus Bradley is linebackers coach Richard Smith.
Smith followed Bradley from the Los Angeles Chargers to Las Vegas.
With 33 years of NFL coaching resume to his credit, he’s a veteran of his trade and exactly what the Silver and Black need to boost the linebackers.
With linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski settled in well last season as the primary linebacker, the priority lies in finding the support Kwiatkoski desperately lacked last year.
One player that Smith will likely develop into the man to match up with Kwiatkoski is linebacker Tanner Muse. Muse, selected as the 100th overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, did not see a single game of action last year due to a toe injury at training camp. That injury made him miss the entire season.
Then there’s the other top contender from last year who showed a lot of potential, especially at the end of last season, Nicholas Morrow.
With Smith’s experience developing young talent as recent as last season with rookie linebacker Kenneth Murray, the hope is the linebacker corps can begin to be the defensive threat it truly needs to be in order to apply extra pressure to opponents.
In the case with Murray, Smith guided him to a team-leading 107 tackles last season, setting a Chargers franchise record for most tackles by a rookie.
Smith brings knowledge and experience, hoping to find the consistency the linebacker corps has been missing recently.
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