Talkin' With Tyvon 2010: #04

Greetings Silver and Black Pride community. Once again I pleased to bring to all of you our player/fans interaction and interview with Tyvon Branch with #04 in the weekly installment of the series: Talkin' With Tyvon 2010

This week's interview follows the Raiders first win of the season against the Rams, with Tyvon feeling like to team and its schemes are coming together for the first time in a long time. As time permits, Tyvon will be back here to answer all of your questions, so please pose your questions to Tyvon in the comments section.You can continue to keep up with Tyvon and his thoughts by following him on his twitter page @tyvonbranch.

After the jump you will read how Tyvon felt about the first win last week along with the upcoming game in Arizona.

Hey Raider fans!!!!!! Thanks for the support on Sunday. We love you guys. You keep it up and the wins will come!!!!

TB

TRW: I’m sure it feels great to get the first win of the season under the belt and especially to do it at home in front of Raider Nation. The team seemed to be feeding of the crowd, especially in the 2^nd half. How much of a factor was the energy of the crowd and the team in the final outcome?

TB: The crowd is great. After playing in a lot of different cities, Raider Nation is amazing. I love the energy they bring, and it is truly unrivaled throughout the NFL.

TRW: In the first half, both the offense and the defense were struggling, but in the 2^nd half, it was a different team out there, especially with the defense which created much more pressure in the 2^nd half. Can you describe what went on in the locker room at half time that gave the team new life for the 2^nd half?

TB: I can’t give away all of our secrets, but the coaches saw some things we could exploit and we went after them. It is great to be able to update the game plan and really execute.

TRW: Steven Jackson seems to have his way with the Raiders defense in the first half, both by running and receiving. In the 2^nd half though, the defense really shut him down which bodes well for the run defense. What adjustments were made in the 2^nd half that allowed the defense to have success with the run defense?

TB: Once again, the coaches saw some things from the box and they implemented some new schemes on the fly. Stephen is an excellent player and he is tough to bring down. I also think seeing him for a half gave us an opportunity to rethink what was and wasn’t working.

TRW: Richard Seymour was missed out there against the Rams, but big John Henderson filled in quite nicely. Henderson was really clogging up the lanes so that you could get up there in the box and make tackles. Do you believe that the Raiders defense has finally turned the corner with defending the run?

TB: I think so. When we play as a unit, I think we are tough to run on. Not only do we have some huge bodies up front, but we have some speed in the backfield that can fill in and make plays.

TRW: This upcoming Sunday you travel to Arizona to play the Cardinals. The monkey on the back of the Raiders has been the inability to put back-to-back wins together. What will the Raiders be doing this week in preparation for the Cardinals to avoid any sort of letdown?

TB: Obviously we are going to have to look at some film and see what they bring to the table. This will be the third week in a row when we face an excellent running back in Beanie, so run defense is going to be key. Then again, we can never forget about Fitzgerald and that receiving crew. Those guys make plays. I know the Falcons put up some points, so the Cards will be anxious to get back out there and prove themselves.

Thanks Tyvon and best of luck in Arizona and getting back-to-back wins.