New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) is sacked by Oakland Raiders defensive end Khalil Mack (52) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 19, 2017, in Mexico City. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)

On the Raiders podcast with Joe:

The two Oakland Raiders defensemen who sat out practice during the week Bruce Irvin and Khalil Mack after the firing of former defensive coordinator Ken Norton Jr for maybe two different reasons that maybe Irvin and Mack sat out because they were tired and needed an non injury day off from practice, then the other reason being that Irvin and Mack were disappointed in the Norton firing although they didn’t express an opinion when asked and Mack told a reporter that he wanted to keep his thoughts to himself it certainly didn’t help improve morale.

Irvin and Mack are two of the most important moving parts of the Raiders defense these two players are close to Norton but also the rest of the Raiders defense they pretty much haven’t played the part of the expectation so they need someone to have a fall back on. It’s almost to a certainty that Irvin and Mack were protesting the Norton firing because they were really close to him and respected him as an defensive coordinator.

Joe Hawkes Beamon does the Oakland Raiders podcasts each week for http://www.sportsradioservice.com