Maurice Hurst already made an impression his rookie year for the Raiders as was one of the lone bright spots on an underwhelming defense in 2018. But he’s primed to be even better his second season as a professional.
The fifth-round pick out of Michigan had a lot to say in a video posted by the Raiders’ official Twitter account. And he backed it up by posting the video himself and coining a slogan of sorts at the same time.
“I just try to be a playmaker,” Hurst said in the above video. “That’s my motto. That’s who I am as a person — someone that’s going to be disruptive, someone that’s going to affect games. As long as I do that then I’m happy with my play.
“That’s my main emphasis — not to be specifically good in one area but to be good in all areas and to change games and to be that guy that is able to disrupt and able to penetrate and able to affect quarterbacks … That’s something that I’m trying to become as quickly as possible and try to have more of an impact.”
The Raiders defense tallied just 13 sacks in 2018, so more playmaking from Hurst would be incredibly welcome. And fortunately, he’s on schedule to make a significant impact next season. He had four sacks from the interior in just 13 games as a rookie.
And Hurst stands to have an improved supporting cast. The Raiders have four selections in the first 35 picks in the upcoming NFL Draft and plenty of salary cap space. Plus, he’ll have additional motivation from his fall in the draft due to an irregular heartbeat detected at last year’s combine. That problem appears to be in the past, and Hurst will have every opportunity to let his personality shine in 2019.
