Perryman soaking up honor in his new city
LB had career year in first season with Raiders
Raiders linebacker Denzel Perryman is looking forward to seeing a different side of Las Vegas during Pro Bowl week.
The 29-year-old was traded to the Raiders during training camp and immediately went to work learning the playbook and focusing on the task at hand.
It paid off for both him and his team.
Perryman, who spent the first six years of his career with the Chargers, recorded 154 tackles to more than double his career high, finished among the league leaders and made his first Pro Bowl.
“I’ve been in the league seven years, my first time ever being selected, and really even on the ballot,” he said.
It may not have happened had things not lined up right before the season. Perryman signed a two-year contract with the Panthers in the offseason, but his old defensive coordinator Gus Bradley was in need of help at linebacker after some training camp injuries. The Raiders reached out and made a deal with Carolina to bring him aboard.
“He’s the energizer bunny,” former interim coach Rich Bisaccia said. “He’s got great presence on the field … he gives us a great sense of confidence that everyone is going to line up right. If they don’t, he’ll get you lined up. And then he’s a big tackler.”
Now Perryman gets to soak up the most star-studded week the league has to offer and do it in his new home stadium with the Pro Bowl in Las Vegas at Allegiant Stadium.
He may not be a great host just yet, however.
“I haven’t experienced Vegas like that,” he said. “As far as all the events on The Strip and all of those things, it will be my first time really doing a lot of that.”
He certainly earned the chance.