Raiders QB Coach Mike Sullivan Rookie Chemistry & Offense Development

Sat, Aug 8, 2026

Video Transcript

How important is it to have a guy like Fernando and Malik, both rookies, coming in, develop their chemistry together as they're both learning the offense?

You know, Malik has done a great job.

We're happy he's here.

I know Fernando's happy he's here.

And I think when you have all of the young guys that come together, you know, there's, there's a benefit to that, you know, just to learning.

Subtle nuances and, and the body language and if that can help the anticipation, then we're able to get that ball out and have that timing that we talked about, uh, which everybody likes, right ?

Certainly the line coach likes it and, uh, you know, not taking sacks or making bad decisions .

So that's definitely a benefit for us.

What are you gonna are you gonna look for Fernando in the preseason, you know, I think it'd be just seeing if he can continue to build and grow and develop and You know, some of the issues that we identify in the various parts of his game that he's needed to improve upon, can he take that next step?

Can he continue to advance and play with that level of confidence and conviction and, and play fast and execute?

So it's really just taking, you know, we want to have a progression, you know, certainly we'd hope whatever, however the outcome.

Transpires on Thursday.

It ends up being better the next time and then the next time, and it's a never ending process, you know, we're constantly going to be trying to reach perfection even though it might not be attainable.

We're going to do our damnedest to try to try to reach it.

We've seen days where he's up and down, but he finishes practice really well.

How, what does that tell you how he handles adversity?

Well, you know, we talk a lot about when we have our two minute drills, how critical those are, um.

I know that's common sense, you know, Captain obvious statement, but, you know, a quarterback or any player for that matter may have had some mistakes along the way, and yet they've done enough to be in a two-minute drive to win the game.

It, it could have been something where a quarterback or a player was playing tremendous football, and they still have to produce at the end of the game.

That's really not all plays, not all situations are weighted the same.

Certainly, you know, in your 2-minute drives, you're going to have red zone, you're going to have 3rd down, it's one dimensional, you're battling the clock, there's, there's all the pressure, plus you had the fatigue component.

It's gonna be kind of.

Out here and so they're feeling it and you know, it really puts that pressure on to perform and we, we talk a lot about wanting to make sure we're at our best when our best is needed and that's the time so that regardless of what's happened prior to that two-minute drill, good or bad, it's irrelevant.

We've got to perform and, and, and train that way and get that callous and get that hardness.

So then we're called upon on a Sunday we're able to perform.