Divine Deablo
When Deablo was drafted in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft, there were some concerns about where he fit in an NFL defense.
He went to Virginia Tech as a wide receiver, then transitioned to defensive back, playing free safety, and eventually found himself at linebacker. So when the team drafted him, they expected there to be a bit of a learning curve.
But it's Year 4 of his NFL career, and he is still making rookie mistakes. He does not have a rich history of playing linebacker, and it shows on frequent occasions.
His misque against the Chargers cost the Raiders a touchdown when he mistimed the snap count and was out of position for a blitz. These errors are costly in close games and are magnified against elite teams.
Through two games, he is allowing a 118.8 passer rating when targeted, which is one of the worst marks on the team.
According to Tristen Kuhn, Deablo did still record two run stops, but he also missed two tackles. I get that Lamar Jackson and Co. are some of the most slippery players in the league, but he has missed five tackles already this year, which is a staggering 35.7% of his attempts.
Head coach Antonio Pierce mentioned in his presser that some sort of injury may have limited some of Deablo's reps against the Ravens, but regardless, the team started to play Luke Masterson more against Baltimore on Sunday.
If Deablo is banged up or continues to miss tackles and allow receptions at the rate that he has, I would not be surprised to see more of Luke Masterson. Even Tommy Eichenberg, Amari Burney or Amari Gainer could see some reps.