It was just a few months ago when the Raiders still had one of the highest-paid and most seasoned offensive lines in football. While much of the team seemed to be in a perennial state of rebuild, the offensive line seemed like the one steady, veteran group.
Then within a matter of days, it became one of the younger, more unproven lines in the league. That is, of course, with one glaring exception — 14-year veteran guard Richie Incognito.
The 38-year-old was cut and quickly brought back. But the team he returned to looks quite a bit different from the one he briefly left.
The primary new starters are center Andre James and rookie right tackle Alex Leatherwood. James in particular steps in next to Incognito where Rodney Hudson had lined up for several years as arguably the league’s top center. Hudson was traded to Arizona.
Not only is Incognito now being asked to step into the leadership void left by Hudson’s departure but he is also reminded more than ever before just how wide the gap is between where he is and where some of these young players are. It’s literally a generation difference.
“Not a lot of the guys that come in get it. About the grind, about the hunger,” Incognito said. “When I came in it was be quiet, get in the weight room, earn your reps, earn your spot. Now these guys come in and it’s Instagram, Twitter, and all this hype and ‘oh, I did this in college’ and they live off that. It takes them a year or two or three to learn what it takes to stick at this level and a lot of them don’t learn it until they’re out.
“That’s what I’m constantly on these guys about. You got to be hungry, every day, you got to grind, you got to want this with every ounce of you body and just put everything you have into it. I don’t feel too old out there. I’m getting up there, but I don’t feel too old.”
Incognito may not *feel* old in terms of his body, but there is a lot of ‘get off my lawn’ and ‘kids these days’ in his mindset.
“I think the biggest generational gap is the music. The music these guys listen to is terrible. It’s all the same ‘da duh da da duh da duh’ and it’s just…it’s nauseating,” Incognito said, shaking his head.
Incognito says this somewhat tongue in cheek — though no lies were told — and he noted that he is still single and likes to “hang with the boys” on the line.
A couple of times in this young camp, I have stood near the offensive linemen and just watched them work. More importantly, I listen to them talk. Incognito’s presence is considerable. There is lighthearted banter at times between drills where no one goes harder than Incognito does. Simply put, he lives for this.
“I love playing this game. I got a ton of passion playing this game. That’s why I’m this old and I’m playing. I love it, I love the grind, I love being here in camp, I love working, I love getting better, and now it’s our time. We got a young group, there’s going to be a lot of eyes on us, there’s going to be a lot of scrutiny, but it’s our time to shine.”