Former Nebraska football star Will Compton has found himself a new home in 2019. After spending his first five seasons with the Washington Redskins and last year with Tennessee, Compton has spent 2019 with the Oakland Raiders.
He didn't begin the season with Oakland but since signing with them in late October he's made an impression with Jon Gruden and his staff. The last two weeks, Compton has been starting for the Raiders and has put up the kind of numbers that Gruden and his defensive coaches have pinpointed as the reason the defensive squad has been much improved.
Gruden also pointed out that had the defense not improved, the team wouldn't have a chance (no matter how outside a chance it is) at the playoffs.
Compton makes an instant impact
The former Nebraska football star has spent most of the season coming off the bench. He's appeared in a total of eight games this season and has started just three. Up until the December 15 game against Jacksonville, Compton's season-high in tackles was four.
Against the Jaguars, he amassed nine tackles. Last week against the Los Angeles Chargers, he has 12 stops and 10 of those were solo tackles. Those performances have made Raiders' head coach Jon Gruden quite happy.
Gruden told the Review-Journal he's very much liked what he's seen from the former Husker. "He’s really made some plays and made an impact here at a position where we really needed him,” Gruden has made Compton the signal-caller for Oakland the last two weeks. While the Raiders lost to Jacksonville, they allowed just 20 points.
The team allowed just 17 points in last weekend's victory. Those two games come after the team had allowed at least 40 points in both of the two games before the Jaguars' game.
Coaches keep up the congratulatory talk
Raiders coordinator Paul Guenther also talked about how much Compton in the middle of the defense has helped them. Guenther pointed to the game against the Chargers.
The coached talked about the different looks they gave the Chargers. They liked the way that Compton dealt with the different looks and confused the Los Angeles offense. He looked good enough in those defensive adjustments that the coaching staff has every intention of leaving him as the defensive signal-caller.
Gruden, who is considered a bit of a wild card in the NFL, said similar things about Compton after the Raiders' latest game. The former Nebraska football player apparently got after Gruden for not smiling during the team's recent win. Gruden called Compton a "weird dude" but seems to like that kind of weirdness.
The Oakland Raiders will have at least one more game this season with Will Compton leading the defense. Should they win and get some help, the team could be going to the playoffs.