On going up against Raiders CB Nnamdi Asomugha

“I go against Champ Bailey everyday, so it is to my advantage. When I go out there and practice I go against not just Champ Bailey, but also Dré Bly. Asomugha is really good. He is probably one of the best in the business, but we are not going to back down from the challenge. It is going to be exciting.”

 

On Raiders CB Nnamdi Asomugha being underrated

“I was looking at the Pro Bowl voting the other day and he was like third. He honestly should be number one or two. He has only been thrown at once per game, that is his average and we threw on him three times the first game. He does a good job of shutting down one side of the field. As a receiver I love this type of game because it is a challenge.”

 

On how Raiders CB Nnamdi Asomugha differs from Broncos CB Champ Bailey

“Yesterday, in the phone conference (with Oakland media) I told everyone that they are similar in the way they study. They are great students of the game and you can tell by how they play. I am not there with him so I really don’t know what he is doing, but it seems like he is always in the right place. He knows what he is doing so it is definitely going to be a chess match out there.”

 

On inconsistency from game to game

“I think we are a fairly young team and at times we play immature. So far this season we have controlled our own destiny. I think we are maturing and we are more experienced. We are one (in the AFC West) right now and we are definitely a tough unit when we protect the ball and play together. Lately, we have been doing a good job with ball security and if we continue to do that, things will be good for us now and six games down the road.”

 

On how good it is to play at home this week

“Our fans are the best in the business and we are so excited to get back home. We started off the second half of the season pretty good, 2-0. We have to win at home. We are excited to play in front of our fans with the energy they give us. It is going to be a good feeling to run out of that tunnel.”

 

On Marshall missing the first game against Oakland

“That seems like three years ago to me. We are just taking it one week at a time. I am not even thinking about the past, I am not even thinking about last week. It is the Oakland Raiders right now. Their record doesn’t show how good of a team they really are and all the talent they have. It is going to take all 11 guys to get the job done.”

 

On the defense hitting in practice

“I never like getting hit, honestly. Like I said last week, we changed some things up with the way we have been practicing and it has been working for us. We haven’t been turning the ball over and hopefully we stay on that track this week, keep it rolling.”

 

On the mental effect of switching practice up

“Our mindset is different. It is that part of the season where you want to start peaking and getting everything rolling. Now is the time where your mind will mentally need to be in it. Our mindset is definitely different in practice and the way we approach things.”

 

On losing TE Nate Jackson to injury

“It is really big. We have a lot of guys that can go and everyone is an important piece to our puzzle. When you lose a guy like that it definitely takes away from what we are trying to accomplish. It is going to make it a little tougher but we still have (TE) Tony (Scheffler) and a few other guys that can get the job done. That is what Coach (Mike) Shanahan and the front office did a great job getting depth so we will be all right.”

 

On if he has thought about playing on both sides of the ball like FB/LB Spencer Larsen

“I have thought about that before but I don’t think Coach (Mike) Shanahan is going to let me do that. I am excited about what the defense has been doing the past couple of weeks. You take away two or three plays and really the defense has pretty much shut out the past couple teams. If they can get that down again this week we will be all right.”