NAPA -- Raiders general manager Mike Mayock referred to HBO's "Hard Knocks" as an "intrusion" Friday. A clear sign the Silver and Black weren't thrilled with having the documentary series thrown in their lap as they look to cultivate a new culture in Oakland.
Quarterback Derek Carr, however, has a different opinion of the army of cameras and microphones that have invaded Napa along with Jon Gruden and his players.
"To be honest with you, we had some fun with it, man," Carr said after practice Saturday. "You know, coach and I have had a lot of fun with it. They're not in coach and I's meeting room, so we get to plan some stuff and have some fun with them. It's been really cool, to be honest with you, because people get to see us in our real environment. People don't get to see coach Gruden telling our rookies how much he loves them, they just see him yelling at people and stuff like that.
"They don't get to see me competing and talking trash and stuff like that. What I think it does is it just it opens up the world to show who we really are. And I think that's a good thing, if you have nothing to hide then I think it's a good thing. So I've really enjoyed them honestly, it's been cool. It's not really a distraction, to be honest with you. There's so many cameras around all the time. Coach is always filming his presentations, so we're kind of used to it. It hasn't been a distraction as much as I thought it would be. It hasn't been at all. They've been great to work with and we've really enjoyed it."
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The HBO cameras, fans and media got their first real look at Carr and the 2019 Raiders on Saturday during Day 1 of training camp. Even with Antonio Brown not suiting up, Carr looked crisp and had good chemistry with a number of his receivers, including Tyrell Williams and rookie Hunter Renfrow.
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After a 4-12 season a year ago, the Raiders reshaped their roster and have big expectations for 2019 despite a tough schedule. If the Raiders are able to go last to first, "Hard Knocks" will have given fans their first look at a new dawn of Raiders football.
