Las Vegas Raiders Andre James on the State of the Silver and Black
HENDERSON, Nev.-The Las Vegas Raiders have their superstar quarterback in Derek Carr. Entering his second season as a starter, Carr's protection is anchored by Andre James.
Why understandably at times Andre James struggled last season, with each game he got better, and he has Josh McDaniels and Dave Ziegler high on the former UCLA Bruin.
You can watch Andre's entire press conference below, or read the transcript:
Center Andre James
Q: What was behind the process of guys running laps after making mistakes in practice? How important is accountability with this team?
James: “It's all about the details. These coaches are super detail-oriented, and we love that. Yeah, we need to clean up some of the snaps. You know, first day back at it, you got different QBs, different centers doing exchanges, so it's just something we need to clean up and something we're going to continue to work on.
Q: Is that kind of a big picture thing in terms of the accountability itself?
James: “Exactly. I think that would be a good picture to just show you what's going on here. Just to show you that we're not going to let little things slip. There's accountability for everything that we do and that's just something that this coaching staff has brought in and something that's going to be a part of practices.”
Q: How does it feel for you in the second year that you're anchoring this offensive line and stepping into that role of kind of being a leader on the offensive line?
James: “I feel really good. Second year, I feel like this is going to be a big year for me as is for a lot of guys now being able to get back into it and kind of know what it's like now to have some games under our belt. So, super excited to grow on the past and just keep moving forward.”
Q: As much as you might try to block out noise, it's tough to hear like expectations and that this offense is going to be really good as long as the offensive line plays well. What does that make you think about?
James: “I feel like a lot of guys here, including myself, do a good job blocking out the noise. We're super excited about the guys that have been added to this team. We got a lot of new faces, a lot of good players and we're just a super excited just to get out there and work together and just keep growing. So, we're super excited.”
Q: How can competition at multiple positions help the team get better?
James: “There's a lot of competition. I feel like there's competition all over and I feel like every job is open. So, competition only brings out the best in people. No one's safe and you just got to keep working. I go out there with a mentality that my job can be taken any day, and with that type of mentality, I feel like it pushes you to work harder, and it keeps you on your toes and never getting comfortable.”
Q: Yesterday, John Simpson said that Dylan Parham was a good rookie. What's been your experiences with Dylan so far?
James: “Yeah, he's a really good rookie. He plays a lot of different positions, which is which is super important as being an offensive lineman, especially when you can only dress so many people during a game. So, to have a guy like Dylan who can play all different positions is super important. He keeps the room stocked up with snacks and that's what's important to us as offensive linemen.”
Q: There's a lot of change on the offensive line last year. Did you guys feel like you eventually kind of settled in and started building some cohesiveness and chemistry?
James: “Oh, yeah, no doubt. Towards the end of the year, we got super comfortable with each other and started to really mesh towards one another. And that's what you want as an offensive line. But to do that, it takes a lot of a lot of time and a lot of reps, and a lot of games being put under your belt. So, now we just want to build on what we have and what we've done in the spring, what we've done in the past, understanding how we want to fit into combinations and just keep building on top of what we've done.”
Q: We saw some guys fall and play it off as fun. Is it still important to keep things lighthearted, especially on the first day like this?
James: “Oh, yeah. You're going to have some guys down the ground the first day just getting your feet back under you, getting your pad level down again. So, it's funny to see some guys fall down and make sure they are not hurt, but it's always funny to see that.”
Q: Thoughts on UCLA and USC leaving the Pac-12?
James: “Yeah, I got a lot of thoughts. It was an interesting decision. Honestly, I didn't see it coming. I thought it was going to be just rumors. But I feel like it's good competition. Honestly, at the end of the day it’s good competition. It's a chance to play different teams and different conferences. If you’re on a team you want to play the best, so I think that’s what you are going to get with this switch.”
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