Rob Leonard to be Raiders DC
Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2026 1:22 pm
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I agree but on the other hand at some point it's on the player to execute. After sleeping on this, I like the hire better than I initially did. Really the only continuity aspect is Leonard and Woods. Other than that it'll be a new staff & Leonard has been getting some hype in recent years
I think everyone on staff is in agreement the team as a whole lacks talent across the board. Give him a couple years like you would any coach hired in our position knowing this. He either sinks or swims but my bet is we see gradual improvement. People in the organization that matter and make decisions have seen him up close and personal for a while now and seemingly don’t think the moment is too big for him.Be_Easy_25 wrote: Sat Feb 14, 2026 5:54 pm I don’t like this for Rob Leonard. I don’t think there’s enough talent on that side of the ball.
A veteran DC could take the heat for a meh defense if it lacks talent. Can Rob survive that?
I have my doubts.
You only add Trey if you're keeping Maxx to maximize the DE position. I'm not replacing one older DE for another.Be_Easy_25 wrote: Sun Feb 15, 2026 5:29 am I need to see some serious moves to make sure that Rob is in a position to succeed.
At the very least, that 2nd round pick needs to be a DT or moved to get our DT in the first.
Devin Lloyd a fit?
Maybe add Trey Hendrickson on a 1 year deal? 2 year deal?
Yeah and in either scenario, Hendrickson probably isn't going to sign here. He'll definitely be looking at contendersBoKnows81 wrote: Sun Feb 15, 2026 5:43 am You only add Trey if you're keeping Maxx to maximize the DE position. I'm not replacing one older DE for another.
...agree, and also, while I think that Leonard has a chance to stick, I wouldn't be surprised if we see some of his position support stick this year for continuity, rather than plug other guys viewed also as possibly 'temporary' fills, for those positions.chucker wrote: Sat Feb 14, 2026 4:47 pm I think Kubiak is worth the wait..... but yes we are likely compromising with some other staff additions as a result. We'll have opportunities to address it next year.
Yep, if any part of our defense overperformed, it was the D-line. Looks like Leonard got the most out of those guys.Hellbound wrote: Sun Feb 15, 2026 5:30 am I agree but on the other hand at some point it's on the player to execute. After sleeping on this, I like the hire better than I initially did. Really the only continuity aspect is Leonard and Woods. Other than that it'll be a new staff & Leonard has been getting some hype in recent years
As for people complaining about the defense last year, while I don't think PG was a good dc, Pete was a huge problem. Not only for the defense but team itself.
Hopefully they invest some talent on defense because aside from Tyree, the dline did play pretty decent for the amount of talent that he had to work with. If not then it's not gonna matter who the dc is
Yes, and either play them or show them the door creating a roster spot for a player that will actually contribute and be used.chucker wrote: Sun Feb 15, 2026 6:16 am With Leonard at DC, hopefully we'll have a plan to develop the players we've recently drafted who haven't had enough opportunities rather than scrapping them before ever giving them a chance. Hemingway, Pegues and Eichenberg might give us more this year. Porter did get opportunities, but it was probably too soon for him to be really ready for them given his inexperience since switching from the offensive side.
It certainly was an imbecilic move. Downing was incompetent.ALLRAIDERWORLD21 wrote: Sat Feb 14, 2026 5:20 pm Not quite, in that instance Raiders were coming off a 12-4 season where the offense had excelled only to fire the OC because the coach and QB didn’t get along with him. It was an imbecilic move to fire Musgrave in the first place so Carr could have his little buddy who wasn’t as hard on him.
....and while the lack of playing time and development is more often discussed on the offensive side of the ball, we do have some guys who could become contributors on this side, and they just were not ready yet, or perhaps could have been given more reps and were not. ...either way. we shall see.chucker wrote: Sun Feb 15, 2026 6:16 am With Leonard at DC, hopefully we'll have a plan to develop the players we've recently drafted who haven't had enough opportunities rather than scrapping them before ever giving them a chance. Hemingway, Pegues and Eichenberg might give us more this year. Porter did get opportunities, but it was probably too soon for him to be really ready for them given his inexperience since switching from the offensive side.
I was one of the peeps on this board who questioned why we were not keeping some of our defensive players, Others responded 'too expensive.'WNYRAIDER wrote: Sun Feb 15, 2026 6:54 am ....and while the lack of playing time and development is more often discussed on the offensive side of the ball, we do have some guys who could become contributors on this side, and they just were not ready yet, or perhaps could have been given more reps and were not. ...either way. we shall see.
....when it comes to d lineman, it always frustrates me to see some of the guys we cut, or let go over others, contributing significantly on other teams....