Why the Raiders Want S Marcus Epps Playing Maximum Amount of Snaps

Las Vegas Raiders safety Marcus Epps played every defensive snap in 12 games for the Raiders last season.

Dec 14, 2023; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders safety Marcus Epps (1) reacts after forcing a turnover against Los Angeles Chargers running back Joshua Kelley (25) in the first quarter at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports | Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports

The Las Vegas Raiders view veteran safety Marcus Epps as a very valuable asset on their defense.

This was quite evident last season when Epps played at least 80 percent of the team's defensive snaps in all but two games. He played every single down on defense in 12 of those 15 games.

Epps was rightfully named a team captain ahead of his first season with the Silver and Black and should be one again this coming season.

Last week, Raiders senior defensive assistant coach Rob Ryan discussed just what makes Epps so valuable.

“Well, I mean, off the field he's just one of them cerebral cats now," Ryan said. "He's very smart. He played at Wyoming; I think they got a barn named after him over there. But the thing on the field now, he's one of our loud guys. You know, he speaks up, he runs the whole show back there and [Robert] Spillane echoes it, and the communication is night and day difference. And he and Tre’von [Moehrig] have really put a bond in there and watch out for this Isaiah [Pola-Mao]. He's come on and you can play him anywhere, so it's really special.

"But believe me, Epps is so much better than people think, like, well, he had no interceptions. Yeah, OK. I guess he never had any impact on our defense. Look again, and then you want to see how much he's missed? When you take him away from a defense and see how that defense went. I mean, they are busting assignments all over the place. You know, they blamed eight coordinators they had during the year, but simple fact is when you take a great player out of the middle of your defense, it hurts. Same thing happened to me. I mean, you make a mistake and lose a great player like that, that hurts your defense."

Epps recorded 66 tackles, four for loss, three passes defensed, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery last season.

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