Las Vegas Raiders Daniel Carlson is a Sure-Footed Weapon

HENDERSON, Nev.-The Las Vegas Raiders have one of the elite kickers in all of the National Football League in Daniel Carlson.

The sure-footed Carlson is reliable, and trustworthy, and is excited about the new direction of the Silver and Black.

Carlson spoke after practice and you can watch the entire interview below, and read the transcript:

Kicker Daniel Carlson

Q: How has the transition to the new special teams coach been going for you?

Carlson: “It’s great. Obviously, Tom is coming in with a lot of experience tool. Loved working with Rich [Bisaccia] and all the work he did and kind of the many hats he had to fill last year. That was interesting of course, but time for a change and we are excited for this season and what’s ahead. But like I said, Tom has been here a long time. We’ve played against him and now it’s fun to have him on our side and some of the schemes and stuff like that. For me and AJ, for the most part our job stays the same. Punt it, kick it, far and high and straight, all that good stuff.”

Q: What do you try to do in training camp to keep occupied when you can only kick so much?

Carlson: “You have to be smart and as you kind of go along you figure out your pitch count, like baseball pitchers have I would say is the most similar sport. So, we have to be smart about our reps and all that, but at the same time it’s training camp for us as well and we want to get as much work, and live work especially, as we can to get ready. And obviously we have this extra preseason game which will be great. We’ll get a step up on some of the competition and get some extra reps, so that’s going to be huge to just prepare for the season.”

Q: This is your second year doing One with Community with Credit One and raising money for the community and Southern Nevada Boys & Girls Club. How much does that mean to you?

Carlson: “It’s a really cool deal because it obviously ties into our football success. The more we score touchdowns, the more extra points we kick, the more money we raise for the Boys & Girls Club, After School All-Stars. So, it’s really cool getting to be part of the community here in Las Vegas. I got a Boys & Girls Club two miles away from my house. I get to visit and hang out with those kids, go to different schools around town and see different parts of Las Vegas and Clark County and get to connect with some of those kids. It doesn’t take a lot of time from my life, from AJ and Trent’s lives. A few minutes here and there can make a kid’s day and we were those kids not too long ago, so it’s an honor and blessing to be in this position that we are in. I think being able to give back and hang out with our community and these kids is really special.”

Q: Along those lines, I hear you are a pretty dominate Sharks and Minnows player?

Carlson: “Yeah, I feel like a pretty good athlete out there. When I’m on the practice field with these guys and running around, I’m maybe one of the slower ones, but when I’m competing against third graders, I feel like a pretty good athlete all of a sudden.”

Q: We saw Maxx Crosby practicing long snapping today. Is he coming after Trent’s job?

Carlson: “He slings it pretty well, but I think he’s pretty valuable where he’s at. I think Trent is doing a great job. We will be going into our fifth year together. AJ joined us a year later, but I mean still it’s been a great core group for the specialists that I think we have a great relationship on and off the field, and hopefully we continue to produce for the Raiders for a long time.”

Q: When you see the unselfish stars on this team like Denzel and Darren and Josh working hard and not worrying about contracts, can that provide unity within this team?

Carlson: “Yeah, I think we’ve always had, and especially these last few years, such a great locker room and it speaks to their character and their willingness. Because at some point it is a business as well, but we all just want to play football, we want to win games, we want to compete, we want to play together with this team that we have this season. And so, that’s questions for them, obviously that business side of it. But those guys are showing up, working, competing every day. First day of pads, they are making some plays out there with those pads on. I saw Denzel [Perryman] on the goal line make a big play. It is what it is on that side, but this locker room is really special. We are excited for this year. Got some awesome, awesome guys out there. We’ll see what ends up happening with all those guys, but right now we’ve got a great locker room for sure.”

Q: Are you familiar with any of the kickers in the Hall of Fame? How much are you looking forward to going to Canton?

Carlson: “Yeah, I’ve actually gotten to meet a couple of them, so it’s really cool that we are going to get to find out a little more about the history. I’ve heard we get to tour the facilities and stuff at the Hall of Fame and just learn about what stage we get to play on. All those guys helped build that stuff, so it’s going to be really special to be a part of that week and get to see all those sights and read about those records and all the things they’ve done to kind of pave a way for us.”

Q: The weather on Sunday was windy, is it nice to be able to work on things like that to prepare for certain conditions?

Carlson: “Yeah, it definitely is. Chicago is the Windy City, but people who live in Vegas know it’s pretty windy out here too. I think especially this practice field is pretty open, so it gives us great preparation. Obviously, we have such amazing facilities with the indoor as well. When we are playing at home we can use that environment as well, but it’s great to prepare for when we are on the road playing in windy cities like that. So, I think it’s windy pretty much most of the time. Today was one of the rare exceptions where it was pretty dead. It made it a little more hot and humid out there today.”

Q: Were you at Allegiant on Saturday for the soccer match?

Carlson: “Yes. I was able to sneak over there for the first half before curfew. I grew up playing soccer and obviously just getting to see a different sporting event in that stadium is pretty awesome. It was a lot of fun to be able to be there. It was a pretty different environment, but two obviously massive Spanish teams playing. It was a blast. Me, Trent and AJ got to go and bring our families and stuff. It was a lot of fun. Cool experience and still got to make it back before curfew.”

Q: What did you see from your vantage point from the first day with pads?

Carlson: “It was a lot of fun, but obviously we are working on our own for the most part in practice, but we did get to go see the goal line and stuff when they are running full speed and hitting to the ground. It looked painful out there. I’m glad I don’t have to do that all the time, but we got an awesome group of guys and their competing. It’s really fun to watch when we get the chance.”

Q: You’ve had back-to-back seasons with at least 93 percent effectiveness from field goals. Is that pressure or motivation to keep going?

Carlson: “Last season at this point doesn’t matter. Obviously, it’s nice to have that but every year during camp I kind of write my own goals. Some of that may be based on, ‘hey, I want to improve on this from last year.’ But each year is a new year and I got to continue to prove myself. It’s more like proving it to myself and competing with myself, and so every year I’m trying to improve. Obviously, I’m human and I’m never going to be perfect, but I’m just going to try to get as close as I can to that each day when I practice or play in a game as well.”

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