Marshawn Lynch does not need a ton of early practice

Marshawn Lynch has come out of retirement for the Oakland Raiders, and he is lighting a spark for the surging Raiders. They have revamped their organization into one of the best in the NFL, and they have become so strong that many predictions have them playing the Patriots in the AFC title game. Jack Del Rio is not interested in seeing a lot of early play from Lynch, and there are many reasons why that makes sense.

He is a seasoned veteran

Lynch has been out of football since his retirement from the Seahawks, and he has flirted with coming out of retirement without playing any competitive sports at all. He has fresh legs,and the years that he saved by not playing may be used to play football now. It is important for those of us outside the game to remember that Lynch is only one piece in a much larger puzzle. He did not fuel the Seahawks by himself, and he will not fuel the Raiders by himself now. That team was very good without him, and they simply become better with him.

Oakland is excited

Having Marshawn Lynch playing in Oakland is a major get for the city, and they are ready to see him on the field.

It is a shame that the team will move to Las Vegas with Lynch in-tow given that he is such a big piece of the Oakland community. He is a presence in that town that cannot be denied, and having him play there for even one year is a very big deal for the people who love the Raiders.

He does not need to practice much

Jack Del Rio does not want to see Lynch do anything serious football playing before the Regular Season because he knows that Lynch can play. They need to save his body for the regular season so that he can run uphill for this offense. Forcing defenses to respect Lynch will make Derek Carr and his massive contract that much more scary, and the passing attack could be quite potent even if Lynch runs for something on the order of 750 yards.

He does not need to have an MVP season, but anything that goes above and beyond the minimum expectations will be welcomed by the Raiders offense, defense and fans.

Marshawn Lynch is following the practice of not practicing much when you know that you are ready for the game. He is saving himself to light the spark that may be needed by the Raiders to perhaps make it to the Super Bowl this year. They were on fire when Derek Carr was hurt last year, and they will be even better this year. Adding Lynch simply makes the team look much more frightening when they line up across from opposing defenses.