Raiders linebacker group remains work in progress

Upon watching film of himself from last season, Raiders linebacker Divine Deablo did not always like what he saw.

“I do a lot of wasted steps,” he said. “I shouldn’t move too fast to the right or to the left.”

It was a refreshing and brutally honest example of self-reflection. But it was done so for healthy reasons. Deablo wasn’t bashing himself as much as he was trying to learn from his mistakes.

“I should just bounce my feet, be patient and see what’s going on and then attack because I feel like I’m fast enough to react,” he said. “I just got to be patient.”

Getting better has been a common theme during training camp, not just for Deablo but the entire linebacker room. Unlike the secondary and defensive line, both of which appear to have taken big steps forward through the first two weeks of camp, the state of the linebackers is less clear.

Deablo, in his third season, is the team’s longest-tenured linebacker. That is a startling reality, albeit one that reflects the constant turnover at that position. Between the poor draft-pick decisions and free-agent additions that didn’t pan out, the Raiders have had difficulty fielding viable units, let alone ones that can be relied on for longevity.

That could be changing if Deablo, who has looked good in camp as a run and pass defender, and free-agent addition Robert Spillane provide the kind of production the Raiders expect.

Throw in second-year prospect Luke Masterson, who rose from undrafted free agent to late-season starter a year ago, and the Raiders have the makings of a solid starting group.

For now, depth is provided by veteran Darius Harris, who was signed last week, rookie Amari Burney, holdovers Curtis Bolton and Darien Butler, and undrafted free-agent rookie Drake Thomas.

Of all the position groups, linebacker is one to watch in terms of additions and fortifying.

Spillane was brought in from Pittsburgh, where he played a career-high 16 games last season and had 79 tackles for the Steelers. Much like Marcus Epps and Marcus Peters have added the mindset of ball-hawking to the secondary, Spillane has preached playmaking and disruptiveness from his fellow linebackers.

“He’s a communicator. He’s really tough. He’s all about football. He’s a good leader,” coach Josh McDaniels said. “You want that in the middle of your defense. We want to be a tough group. We want to be a smart group. We want to try to take the ball away as much as we can, and Rob gives us an opportunity to do some of those things and improve.”

Spillane is doing his best to spread the message.

“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,” he said.

Spillane came up with an interception last week. Deablo has knocked down multiple balls in pass coverage. From the linebackers to the defensive backs, takeaways are becoming a familiar sight.

“We’re hungry,” Deablo said. “We’re all going after balls, we’re all running to the ball, and we’re just trying to keep that mindset and keep building it.”

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