Versatility of Raiders safeties brings wanted unpredictability

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Jim O’Neil has been a defensive coordinator twice in his NFL coaching career, but the man who previously called plays in Cleveland and Santa Clara has a narrowed focus in his latest gig as the Raiders senior defensive assistant.

He’ll provide defensive coordinator Paul Guenther additional perspective in game planning sessions, but he works with safeties on a daily basis. That work has been particularly gratifying because of the personnel under his tutelage.

Reggie Nelson. Marcus Gilchrist. Karl Joseph. Erik Harris.

Those safeties made the 53-man roster, and it’s fair to expect all of them to contribute on defense this season.

“When you become a play caller, it’s tough to dig in and interact with guys because there’s so much you’re dealing with,” O’Neil said. “It has been great to get into the secondary room and really get to know all these guys.”

O’Neil loves that they can do it all, that they can play both safety spots and make a defense less predictable.

They aren’t carbon copies. Nelson’s the cagy veteran with experience working within Guenther’s scheme. Gilchrist’s the professor, a coach on the field adept at dissecting offenses and someone who can play all over the field. Joseph is the heavy hitter. Harris is the instinctual player who can do most everything well.

All of these guys will contribute, despite a typical formula of running with three-down players at the safety spots.

“As a whole, we can do a lot,” Gilchrist said. “I think that’s where the league is going. Over the past two or three years, a lot of guys play left and right and you have to do everything. In our room, we have the versatility to do all of it, which is a great benefit.”

Gilchrist gives the Raiders defense freedom to do a lot. He can play strong and free safety, slot cornerback and nickel linebacker if required. That means the Raiders can play with three safeties – they’ll do that at times -- and adjust to formations as they emerge.

Even at this stage, it’ll be tough to tell who will start on Monday against the Rams. The Raiders haven’t shown much in the preseason, and could well have tweaked combinations since practices became largely closed to the media after training camp.

This team starts the season with an air of unpredictability, and they’d like to keep it as long as possible. Safety versatility helps in that regard, especially because those positions are often keys in quarterback reads.

“(Versatility) is very important because, as the season goes on, you write a book on yourself and your team,” Harris said. “When you’re starting to write the book, tendencies show up. The fact we call all play down in the box and all of us can play off or play the slot is very important. It makes it hard for offenses to key on us.”

O’Neil has been a defensive backs coach several times, but his experience as a defensive coordinator helps him provides additional context.

“I can focus in and teach them from a safety perspective, but explain what the linebacker is thinking and why it’s so important to communicate,” O’Neil said. “I’m really enjoying it. It’s a great room in there.”

Here’s O’Neill’s breakdown on each safety in the group:

On Reggie Nelson: “When we were installing the system, every play we watched was Reggie doing something special (in Cincinnati working in Guenther’s system). That gave him instant street cred, not that he needed it. The man has been to Pro Bowls. He has been great helping guys at every level of the defense. He has been a good bridge for us as a coaching staff.”

On Marcus Gilchrist: “It’s amazing what Marcus sees and communicates. He’s going to help us at safety and slot corner. …There are very few guys who can take it from the meeting room to the practice field on the first rep, and he’s one of those guys. He doesn’t love the meeting room, but he loves to play. He’s stealing signals from the quarterback. He’s listening to everything and trying to decipher what it means.”

On Karl Joseph: “Karl is a mold of clay that you’re still developing, but he’s 210 pounds of concentrated mayhem. He’s full speed ahead all the time. He obviously has the big-hit ability. He has improved in man coverage, his discipline and his range, which are things I thought he needed to get better at. He has shown great improvement.”

On Erik Harris: “(He) has been a really great surprise. When I got here, he only played on special teams. He’s the kind of guy you cheer for because of his story. He has really good instincts, and is a mix of all three of the other guys. …He has really good deep safety instincts and he’s really smart.”

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