You may have seen by now the clip of Raiders rookie cornerback Damon Arnette staying stride-for-stride with the speedy Henry Ruggs III and picked off the ball in Raiders camp this week. Here it is for those who haven’t seen it.
“That boy dressing like Boobie Miles today.” 😂
Damon Arnette was Mic’d Up for his first training camp » https://t.co/VO1De53hSJ pic.twitter.com/0WWheEFBmd
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) August 19, 2020
Arnetted picked off the ball and it’s garnered quite a bit of attention, including that of former NFL star receiver Chad Johnson.
I’m not sure who number 20 is for the Raiders but please let him know whoever he trained with needs a significant raise because his technique, patience & lateral movement is power point worthy ®️
— Chad Johnson (@ochocinco) August 20, 2020
It was a nice play. The question is what we should take from that play with regard to Arnette’s overall performance. So, I asked Paul Guenther about it. He seemed to downplay it, not understanding what the big deal is.
“Just that he’s a talented corner,” Guenther said Thursday over conference call from training camp. “He’s not scared, he’s real patient at the line of scrimmage, he trusts his speed and his technique. But that’s really what we expect out of him every day when he goes out there. I don’t understand, it was a good play, but that’s what he’s supposed to do, that’s why we brought him here and we’re excited to have him.”
Arnette has worked quite a bit with the first team along with veteran Prince Amukamara with whom is competing for starting job this season. Basically Prince is the seasoned veteran who can step in until Arnette is ready. Arnette looks good so far, but it will be up to the coaches if they think he’s game ready. And with no preseason, that could be difficult to know with certainty.
