In the Las Vegas Raiders’ dominant victory over the Los Angeles Chargers, the only player to score twice was rookie receiver Tre Tucker. The Raiders took the speedy receiver out of Cincinnati in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft, and while he has shown flashes here and there, the Chargers game was a true coming-out party.
Tucker finished with four catches for 59 yards and a pair of touchdowns, the first of his NFL career. And one person this performance didn’t surprise at all was his fellow wide receiver, Davante Adams. The All-Pro receiver praised the rookie for capitalizing on the opportunities he is given and made it clear that the Raiders aren’t using him as some gadget player as the threat of his speed helps the offense immensely.
“Whether it does or it doesn’t, that’s why we have him running that,” Adams said about how Tucker’s speed affects the defense. “He’s not on dummy routes. He’s running legit routes where he has the opportunity to make a play and sometimes, he’s the number one read depending on the play, and sometimes he’s not. And he’s just got to keep running like how he does, and he will fall into some of those plays like how he did last game.”
Having that threat of a player taking the top off the defense truly impacts everything else as it opens up space underneath for the Raiders’ other playmakers. Adams understands that teams have to account for Tucker when he’s on the field, but also wants it known that some plays are meant for him and he has earned it.
Adams has been impressed with the work ethic of Tucker to not just rely on his speed, but really try and improve his route running ability as well. Adams says the rookie has been picking his brain all year long. “It’s the detail,” Adams said when asked about Tucker’s improvement in that area.
“Ever since he came, I told y’all, he’s asking me all types of questions trying to pick my brain about why I run a route a certain way. I don’t think fast guys can’t do it, but I just think that they take the easy way out and know that they’re fast and they can get away with taking a super wide release on a go route rather than actually doing a release on a guy and getting miles open.”
The Raiders star noted that there’s only a handful of players in the NFL as fast as Tucker, and when that natural ability is combined with a work ethic and desire to get better, paying attention to all the little details, the sky is the limit for what he can be in this league.
