Raiders defense gets best of Jimmy Garoppolo during practice

The Raiders defense stole the spotlight from quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and the offense during Monday’s practice.

Garoppolo struggled to find his rhythm and precision during the session, of which the third-down offense and two-minute drill were the heavy emphasis.

To keep things in perspective, it was not a fully padded practice. There was no hitting, and physicality was limited to the bare-minimum body contact among linebackers and defensive backs and their offensive counterparts.

But it was an encouraging sign nonetheless for a defense that has been the team’s Achilles’ heel for years.

“A blue-collar, gritty defense that’s stingy, always attacking the ball, making plays, making turnovers,” said linebacker Robert Spillane, who signed in the offseason, when asked last weekend what characteristics he wants the defense to be defined by.

For a good chunk of the nearly two-hour indoor practice, those characteristics were on display. There was tight coverage downfield, and defenders were making breaks on the ball to either bat away passes or, on one occasion, intercept a pass.

That kind of play needs to translate to games for the Raiders to have a fighting chance to improve on last season’s 6-11 record. They have forced an NFL-worst 58 turnovers since 2019. Spillane’s former team, the Pittsburgh Steelers, forced 110 in that same period.

“At the end of the day, there’s not much difference between a 2- and a 4-yard gain, but when you make those splash turnover plays, those really affect the outcome of games,” Spillane said. “Good defenses get PBUs (pass breakups), make tackles. Great defenses turn the ball over and score a touchdown, so that’s what we’re looking to do.”

It’s all just chatter at this point, but Monday there was visible evidence that the Raiders are beginning to heed the message.

“Usually when you talk to these guys, they’re driven by goals, right?” defensive coordinator Patrick Graham said. “And if you show them … turnovers and takeaways, it correlates to winning.”

Added Spillane: “It comes down to leadership, showing guys what we want to be as a defense. And not just by talking in the meetings. Going out there and practicing every day, showing that effort, showing the attack on the football.”

Spillane isn’t shy about putting some monetary value on it, either.

“Good players make 100 tackles, they might get a contract the next year, they might not,” he said. “You are a linebacker with five-plus turnovers, you’re going to be in this league a long time. So I’m telling the guys to find ways to get that ball out and make plays.”

On Monday, defensive backs Tyler Hall and Isaiah Pola-Mao, Spillane and linebacker Amari Burney in particular were making aggressive plays, with Pola-Mao coming up with the interception.

“It’s having 11 hungry football players who are on the same page, who are running the same defenses, who are communicating with each other, who are flying to the ball … trying to steal that ball from him at all costs,” Spillane said.

On the other side of the ball, offensive coordinator Mick Lombardi said he wasn’t overly concerned with Garoppolo’s inconsistent day.

“I think it’s just practice from everybody,” Lombardi said. “Everybody on the team … is going through that phase in camp where every day is a different day and every day is a learning experience. You’re going to make some mistakes, and you’re going to learn from them and help you to get better the next day.”

Garoppolo would have thrown back-to-back interceptions at one point, but it appeared as if rookie linebacker Amari Burney dropped the ball as he fell.

“We’ve just got to coach it and correct it and move on and try to get better tomorrow,” Lombardi said.

Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on Twitter.