Rob Leonard wanted to keep things simple in his first game as the Raiders' defensive play-caller.
Since being promoted to defensive coordinator, he's laid the groundwork for a player-led approach while overseeing a transition to a base 3-4 scheme.
But he's aware that Xs and Os can only take his defense so far. His players must have the ability to play fast and free.
"I guess, maybe, the former D-line coach in me, I know when – if you can read body language – when guys are unsure of a call or whatever it may be, or playing a different position that I didn't. That's kind of the same mindset every week is eliminating those things," Leonard said.
"You're trying to run your defense, but at the same time, you can only go at the pace at which players are comfortable to play fast."
His message showed up on the stat sheet to the tune of five sacks and two turnovers. The Silver and Black posted a league-best 56% "havoc" rate – equating to the percentage of plays a defense gets a pressure, tackle for loss, forced fumble, interception or pass breakup.
"He's super cool, calm, collected," Maxx Crosby said. "He told us all week as the week went on, 'I'm just going to trust y'all. I'm going to put y'all in the position you need to be, but I want you guys playing fast and doing your thing.' And he allowed us to be ourselves."
Despite blitzing on less than 19% of plays, the Raiders generated quarterback pressure on 43.3% of their four man rushes – the second-highest percentage in league. And Leonard's ability to move the linebackers and secondary around the field forced Malik Willis' hand, as the Dolphins QB completed just 55.6% of his throws along with an interception to Treydan Stukes.
"I enjoy the players buying into what we're doing, the energy, and them feeling like they have a chance to make a play," Leonard said. "I live for player confidence, like, 'Man, this is my turn to make a play.' More so than how smart I am or any of those things, I'm thinking about putting this position in a certain spot, that's his turn.
"I enjoyed just being us," he added, "just doing what we've been doing. ... To me, it's more we got to just do what we do, how we've practiced for a long time."
Going along with what Leonard has preached, his players also believe mentality and physicality are as vital as any scheme.
"He's always been about attitude and mindset," said Adam Butler, who was also with Leonard on the Miami Dolphins in 2021.
"He's never one to worry about what everybody else is doing. It's all about focusing on what you got to do, how we need to play. He's a ... 'do things right' type of guy. There's just certain aspects of ball that needs to be on point, and he's all about that."
Edge rusher Malcolm Koonce re-signed with the Raiders this offseason and noted that Leonard's promotion to DC was a huge factor in his return.
"I feel like I've played my best underneath him, so I trust him," Koonce said. "I feel like a lot of the core beliefs that he has taught since I've met him inside that D-line room, now it's just on display as the whole defense. ... For him, it's understanding his players and knowing where they fit. Understanding the whole defense is like a puzzle and just putting us in the right places to make plays."
Leonard has another challenge in Week 2: a Los Angeles Chargers team led by Justin Herbert and guided offensively by former Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel, who strung together a few explosive offenses in Miami.
After describing his debut as defensive coordinator as a "humbling" experience, Leonard remains committed to the same philosophy that fueled a successful opener: trust his players and let them play fast.
"I was proud of our effort," Leonard said. "I challenged them on getting 11 hats in the picture, which I think is really hard if that is the standard. I think we had two clips with all 11 jerseys around the ball when it was tackled. That's what I was most proud of."
