Tre Tucker has stepped up as leader in the Raiders' young WR room
HENDERSON, Nev. --Tre Tucker's career with the Las Vegas Raiders has required the 25-year-old wide receiver to grow accustomed to change.
Since he was drafted in the third round of the 2023 draft, Tucker has had four head coaches, seven offensive coordinators (including interim coaches), three wide receiver coaches and caught passes from seven different starting quarterbacks. As challenging as it has been for Tucker to adjust to a new offensive system and role each season, he searches for the beauty behind the madness.
"Obviously, you don't want to have multiple different offensive coordinators [because] you can't play in the same system, but you can't look at the negatives," Tucker said. "The positives, I was able to learn different schemes, different terminology [and] just seeing different things. And I think that's helped me now because a lot of things we're doing, I mean, the NFL is the NFL, everybody runs the same plays, they just call it different, so you know the coaching points, and you get to learn more."
In Year 4, Tucker will be much more different than in seasons past. As the longest-tenured Raider in the fairly young wide receiver room, he's tasked to play a leadership role, similar to his former teammates Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers.
"I was very fortunate to have some great guys in my room when I was a rookie, which helped me grow as a person and as a player," Tucker said. "So that's my whole thing with those guys, is how can I make them better and how can I help them in any way possible?"
Coach Klint Kubiak called Tucker a "quiet leader." While Tucker might not be the loudest person in the room, Kubiak entrusted the 5-foot-8 pass catcher as one of the team's leaders because his mentality and play style embody the culture that the Raiders want to establish under this new regime. "There's already a culture of hardworking guys in our building. He's an example of one of them," Kubiak said.
Tucker didn't ask to be in this role. It was forced upon him due to being at the center of an unproven group of wide receivers. Dont'e Thornton Jr. and Jack Bech are entering their second season. Newly signed wideout Jalen Nailor has been in the league a year longer than Tucker, but he is still getting adjusted to a new team and environment after four seasons with the Minnesota Vikings.
Sixth-round pick Malik Benson has flashed his potential during the team's OTA practice, but he's a rookie and will endure his growing pains.
The Raiders will need Tucker to take another leap as he did in 2025. With former quarterback Geno Smith under center, Tucker caught 57 passes for a career-best 696 and five touchdowns. He started the season strong, catching 29 passes for 389 yards and four touchdowns in seven games. Tucker's numbers dropped as the offense struggled greatly. Tucker totaled 307 yards and a touchdown on 28 catches in the final 10 games.
Despite the Raiders' offensive issues, Tucker was still effective at creating separation from opposing defensive backs. Tucker generated 3-plus yards of separation on 54.3% of his targets.
"He's got to be a playmaker for us, and he has been. And now let's go see what else we can get out of him," Kubiak said.
Tucker is optimistic about how the Raiders plan to utilize him in his new scheme. He said Kubiak's scheme requires wide receivers to be versatile, lining up as an "X," "Z," or a slot receiver. That's a shift in focus from last season under former offensive coordinator Chip Kelly and interim Greg Olson, when he lined up on the outside on 83.2% of his routes compared to 14.5% in the slot.
"In our scheme, you'll see guys everywhere, and that's the whole versatility part. I'm excited to do a bunch of different things," Tucker said.
Tucker has benefited from the presence of veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins. He praised Cousins' knowledge of the offense, having played for Kubiak and offensive coordinator Andrew Janocko in Minnesota. Tucker and Cousins were in sync during the team's ninth OTA practice on Wednesday. Cousins completed a 20-yard pass to Tucker on a comeback route, in which he was able to create separation from cornerback Eric Stokes before securing the ball that sailed over nickel cornerback Taron Johnson.
Later, Cousins concluded the two minutes of practice by throwing a touchdown pass to Tucker in the back corner of the end zone.
"[Cousins] knows the system, so like there's things in the system that he'll be like, 'Hey, on this, this is what I'm looking at.' So, then you go out there and you're on the same page," Tucker said. "He knows defense, he knows coverage, and all that. He's one of the best in the game, for sure, and he has always been. I'm very excited to keep working with him."
