Oakland Raiders: Five OTA thoughts after Week 2
By Austin Gayle
- Jihad Ward Surprises Del Rio Early
Despite having already made the headlines during OTAs for his altercation with Osemele, Ward has also made an effort to impress Del Rio with his performance before the whistle.
“He’s probably a little quicker than I anticipated,” Del Rio said. “He’s a serious kid, so he really studies and works at it, takes great pride in it, but I see him flash a little more in terms of having quickness and the ability to find the football. Some defensive linemen are stuck on blocks and are wrestling the block all the time, and guys will run right by them and they don’t really have the awareness to see them. You can coach him through that, but really, that’s been pretty natural. He’s pretty natural at wanting to find the ball carrier and wanting to find the quarterback, so that’s been the pleasant surprise.”
According to Eddie Paskal of Raiders.com, Ward has also earned high praise from some of the other members on Oakland’s defense, as both Justin Ellis and Khalil Mack reportedly congratulated Ward for knifing into the backfield for what would have been a sack.
Other than the fighting, Ward is off to a good start, and with a lot of people remaining skeptical about the pick because of his overall raw ability; it’s hard to hate a good start.