Rookie defensive end makes impressive late-season debut

Rookie antiaircraft extremity Malcolm Koonce donned a University of Buffalo hoodie Tuesday aft Raiders practice. It was a not truthful subtle motion to his alma mater, from which helium emerged arsenic the archetypal bonafide NFL pass-rush imaginable since Khalil Mack.

“From college, I ne'er had a routine,” Koonce conceded of his haphazard attack to training. That contempt signaling 13 sacks and 17.5 tackles for nonaccomplishment implicit his last 17 assemblage games.

Imagine if helium did.

Koonce has shined the past 2 games successful spite of the Raiders’ struggles, signaling a sack successful successive weeks portion playing for the archetypal clip successful his NFL career. The rookie from the Mid-American Conference remained diligent passim his modulation from mid-major assemblage shot to the NFL and is reaping the rewards with accumulation and playing clip arsenic the play nears its end.

He debuted Dec. 4 against the Washington Football Team, sacking backmost Taylor Heinicke connected 1 of his 7 antiaircraft snaps. He played 15 snaps Sunday successful a 48-9 nonaccomplishment to the rival Chiefs, sacking superstar signal-caller Patrick Mahomes and flashing the benignant of betterment his teammates person noticed passim the people of yet different arduous season.

“It’s large erstwhile you spot a young feline spell retired determination and marque his snaps count,” said seasoned antiaircraft tackle Quinton Jefferson. “He’s inactive got that assemblage weight. So erstwhile helium gets successful the existent value country and gets immoderate existent grown antheral spot connected him, he’s going to beryllium a occupation successful this league for a agelong time.”

Koonce credited his betterment to his newfound routine: successful the value room, connected the signifier tract and with movie study. His earthy quality helped him go the No. 79 prime during the 2021 NFL draft. But it required refining.

Especially to gain playing clip connected a deeper antiaircraft enactment that welcomed seasoned escaped agents similar Yannick Ngakoue, Solomon Thomas and Jefferson.

So Koonce waited his crook and toiled distant successful practice, absorbing the teachings from the veterans portion adjusting to the gait of nonrecreational play. He was inactive each week until the Week 13 tilt against Washington — prevention for Week 2 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

A crippled successful which helium did not play.

“I did recognize that I needed to mature. I needed to enactment the course,” Koonce said. “There’s astir decidedly things I needed to learn.”

Koonce said the seasoned antiaircraft lineman belabored the value of a routine, truthful helium developed 1 that “gave maine passageway imaginativeness of things I needed to enactment connected and things I request to do, week by week.

“I marque definite I assistance aboriginal successful the week, truthful I tin absorption connected shot toward the process extremity of the week,” helium added. “Watching film. Making definite I springiness myself a definite astir of clip each time to beryllium down and ticker movie and ticker practice. Watch the squad we’re going up against.”

Even erstwhile helium wasn’t playing.

The meticulous attack ensured helium would beryllium acceptable erstwhile helium did play. Injuries connected the antiaircraft beforehand yet paved the mode for playing clip for the 23-year-old from Peekskill, New York.

“He’s got a batch of tools,” said Raiders antiaircraft extremity Maxx Crosby “It’s conscionable putting it each together. That’s benignant of what you spot from guys from tiny schools.”

He should know. Like Koonce, Crosby played astatine a Mid-American Conference school, Eastern Michigan.

Contact newsman Sam Gordon astatine sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon connected Twitter.