Raiders Training Camp Preview: Safeties

The Las Vegas Raiders find themselves returning back to training camp with a young group of safeties ready to take the next step forward.

Along with the young group, the Silver and Black have added a veteran leader that can help bring out the best football from their young safeties.

The Potential Starters

The Raiders added Duron Harmon to replace some of the veteran leadership lost in free agency.

The veteran safety won three Super Bowls with head coach Josh McDaniels and Dave Ziegler in New England and will now be looking to bring that winning culture to Las Vegas.

"I'm always trying to get better. Just always, always trying to get better," said Harmon. "Always trying to improve something. It's a cliché saying, but you are either getting better or worse. It's cliché but it's the truth. The moment that you think you have arrived, that's the moment somebody is right behind you and is going to pass you because this is a competitive league. It's under one percent who get here. Just working and always trying to get better."

One of the players ready to make a jump from last year’s success is last year’s second round pick Tre’von Moehrig.

As a rookie, Moehrig helped solidify one part of the Raiders secondary.

"He's in his second year, he's shown the willingness to work," said defensive coordinator Patrick Graham. "He's shown the willingness to communicate. That's the one thing from that position, we're asking those guys to talk a lot – pre and post snap, talk a lot."

Joining Moehrig is former first round selection Johnathan Abram.

Abram led the team in total tackles in 2020, but since his arrival in the league, injuries had set him back from his true potential.

“Johnathan [Abram] is one of those guys that can handle a bunch,” said Graham. “He's a really smart football player. He works at it; he works really hard. He has a great skill set. And really it’s our job as coaches to really put them in the best spots where he could be successful. And I know this about Johnathan, he's willing to do whatever we ask.”

The Reserves

The Raiders return two quality back ups to the Roster, second-year safety Tyree Gillespie and veteran safety Roderic Teamer.

Both players saw a decent amount of playing time last season. Their roles look to continue on special teams and serve as good depth pieces to the team.

The Rookies

The newest additions to the Raiders' safety unit are rounded out by two rookie undrafted free agents, Qwynnterrio Cole and Isaiah Pola-Mao.

Cole was a two-time HBCU All-American at Alcorn State before transferring to Louisville his senior season.

Pola-Mao spent four years at USC, son of Tracey Polamalu, who played football at San Diego State and professionally in the Arena Football League

His uncle, Troy Polamalu, was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2020, while his great uncle Kennedy Polamalu, is currently serving as the Raiders' running backs coach.

The starting unit is pretty much set in place, but as training camp unwinds, the Raiders will find themselves having to make a decision on which players can contribute on multiple positions.

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