Ken Norton Jr. is going unleash Mario Edwards, Jr. this year

The more time that goes by and the more information we obtain, the better the Oakland Raiders defense looks. Much of that comes from the influx of new players this offseason. The Raiders brought in Bruce Irvin, Sean Smith and Reggie Nelson through free agency, filling most of the biggest holes on the defensive roster. Then, they doubled down and added Karl Joseph, Shilique Calhoun and Jihad Ward through the draft, three players who could also have a big impact this season.

But that’s not the only reason that the Raiders defense is looking scarier by the day. With the start of training camp we are learning a little bit more about what defensive coordinator Ken Norton, Jr. is planning for his defense. Most of that is unknown as we still aren’t even sure if there will be a base defensive formation let alone whether it will be a 34 or a 43.

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But we are slowly learning about what Ken Norton is envisioning and one tidbit that came out this week is actually pretty big but hasn’t garnered much attention, yet.

In a San Francisco Chronicle piece about the return of Mario Edwards, Jr. from his neck injury it was revealed that the Raiders plan on using MEJ in even more roles this season. While last year, the Raiders used Edwards as a defensive end and a defensive tackle, this year they appear ready to also use Edwards as a linebacker:

While it was just an afterthought in the piece, this quote blew my mind. The defensive front seven already looks overwhelmingly versatile and that was before we knew that Norton’s plans for Edwards.

Last season, Edwards was a major reason why Khalil Mack went off late in the year. It was Edwards crashing the pocket and giving quarterbacks nowhere to escape from Mack. In limited time as a rookie, Edwards already showed the potential to be a dominant force on the defense. If Norton can get Edwards to also play at a high level as a linebacker, the possibilities for this defense could be endless.

Last year, I was unsure about whether or not Ken Norton, Jr. was going to be a good defensive coordinator. Early in the year I started thinking he really wasn’t up for the job. But by the end of the year, I was impressed with his ability to adjust and adapt to his personnel. This season, he could end up making me completely wrong for ever having any doubt.

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