After leading all Las Vegas Raiders wide receivers in catches, yards and touchdowns last season by a wide margin, Tre Tucker is set to take on a similar role this year in new coach Klint Kubiak’s offense.
But don’t try to label him as the team’s No. 1 receiver entering the season.
“Those things don’t really matter to me,” he said Thursday after an OTA practice at the team facility. “It’s just a game whether you say you’re receiver 1, 2, 3, 8, whatever. You go out there and I’m expected to make plays against whoever’s guarding me, that’s just the mentality of it.”
That’s an attitude directly in opposition to many stars at his position who have often been referred to as divas whose only need greater than targets is attention.
But Tucker has never been that type of player.
“It’s because there’s 11 people out there on the field,” he said. “When people say, “Do your 1/11th,’ that’s what I’m out there to do. So, anything else after that, it’s not really my concern. As long as I’m doing my 1/11th, we’re winning games and we’re having fun, that’s all that matters to me.”
That’s part of the reason Kubiak has been singing the praises of Tucker since he took the job in February.
Kubiak said last week Tucker has been exactly as advertised since the first time they took the field together.
“He can run all day,” Kubiak said. “He’s a quiet leader, a guy that we’re going to put in a leadership role. He’s got to be a playmaker for us, and he has been. And now let’s go see what else we can get out of him.”
Last year, in a different system, that was 57 catches for 696 yards and five touchdowns, all career bests.
It was the first time in his three seasons that so much has been asked of him, particularly after the Raiders traded away Jakobi Meyers.
Tucker has taken the lessons he learned from Meyers, and Davante Adams before that, to help him not only become a better player, but the kind of leader Kubiak is seeking.
As long as it’s not too late.
Tucker said he goes to bed around 8:30 p.m. each night, but recently got a late-night call from rookie Malik Benson.
“My phone’s always open and he’s been texting me,” Tucker said. “But I get into bed very early, I’m getting old. He FaceTimed me, and I was like, ‘Man, I’m already in bed.’ But I was able to help him out with what he needed and that’s all that matters.”
Tucker believes he’s just paying it forward.
“I was very fortunate to have some great guys in my room when I was a rookie, which kind of helped me grow as a person and as a player,” he said. “So that’s my whole thing with those guys, is how can I make them better and how can I help them in any way possible. So, honestly, my phone’s open at any time of the hour because it’s what I love to do.”
Tucker is somehow the elder statesman of a very young receivers group, at least in terms of experience in the organization. He’s sort of the last man standing from previous regimes. But most of the receivers are learning Kubiak’s system, so that is a process they are all embracing together.
Tucker believes it is going to fit him well.
“(Kubiak’s) big thing is just being able to do multiple things, so not just lining up at one spot and playing that spot but lining up at all three,” Tucker said. “In our scheme, you’ll see guys everywhere, and that’s the whole versatility part. I’m excited to do a bunch of different things. You’ll see me here, you’ll see me there, you’ll see that guy here, there. So, we’ll be all over the place.”
It’s all part of the plan for Kubiak and new offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko. While the Raiders didn’t add a true alpha receiver or a prototypical ‘X,’ the room is stacked with fast, versatile playmakers.
“I don’t want to just single out one guy, but all these guys are maximizing their potential,” Janocko said of the approach to the wide receivers group. “Getting the best out of Tre, taking what he’s done well and then maximizing that, and then trying to get specific things for him and every guy to work on. Coming up with a plan for each guy and how to maximize them, how to get the ball in their hands and what they do once they get the ball in their hands.”
Tucker welcomes the challenge for roster spots, playing time and targets.
“One hundred percent and that’s how it should be,” he said of the competition. “That’s the whole goal. All the guys, we’re all competing and that’s what’s going to make us better. There’s no complacency in the room, and all the guys know that, and that’s what we’re out here to do. So the guys we have in the room, young guys, old guys, we’re all competing, we’re all trying to go out there and make each other better, because at the end of the day, we’re all going to be out there on the field together.”
Whether someone emerges as a true No. 1 or not.
Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.
