Charles Woodson credited assistant secondary coach Marcus Robertson for his improved safety play, despite being 38 years old. Robertson was an All-Pro safety in his playing days, and helped the longtime cornerback see his relatively new position through a proper lens.
That’s why the soon-to-be unrestricted free agent came out strong near season’s end, saying he couldn’t see himself returning in 2015 without Robertson.
Woodson got his wish. The Raiders retained and promoted Robertson, who will be the Raiders secondary coach under Jack Del Rio. NFL Network first reported the news Wednesday afternoon.
While Woodson holds clout, this move wasn’t made solely for him. Robertson proved to be an excellent teacher while working primarily, though not exclusively, with the safeties last season. He deserves credit for the improvement of young strong safety Brandian Ross, a vastly superior player this season over last.
This made Robertson’s retention a slam dunk, even before the hiring of a defensive coordinator. As of Wednesday evening, he is the only coach from last year’s staff to return. Joe Woods was the top secondary coach last year.
That’s a role Robertson has filled before. He was the assistant secondary coach for Tennessee from 2007-08, and was chiefs secondary coach by the Titans from 2009-11.
Robertson was the Detroit Lions assistant secondary coach in 2012. He was promoted to full secondary coach in 2013, his last season in Detroit before joining the Raiders.
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