NAPA, Calif. -- Two times this past weekend in training camp, Eddie Vanderdoes burst through the line to sack Derek Carr.
"Well," Carr said with an uneasy laugh, "he never brought me down."
True, touching the quarterback is frowned upon in practice, let alone hitting him and taking him to the ground. But Vanderdoes has not had to make contact with the Oakland Raiders franchise quarterback to make an impression on Carr.
Far from it.
The rookie defensive tackle, who was selected in the third round of the draft out of UCLA, joined the first-team defense in the third practice of training camp and has not surrendered the spot since.
Rather, he has gained some high praise from Carr.
"Very explosive, great hands," Carr said when asked to give a scouting report of Vanderdoes. "He reminds me a lot of the way [Justin] Tuck can get skinny and shoot a gap. The way he plays with his hands, and if he gets beat the first time, he's going to counter again. If he gets beat, then he's going to counter again. His mind never stops. His motor never stops."
Vanderdoes is the prodigal son in Northern California, as he grew up outside of Sacramento in Auburn and has been a frequent subject of the local media. His story is already one of a comeback, having dealt with a torn ACL in 2015 and ankle and bone-bruise injuries that hastened his weight ballooning up to 340 pounds last fall.
But staying healthy and working with a nutritionist and trainer has the 6-foot-3 Vanderdoes closer to 300 pounds, more active and athletic. Even if he missed Tuesday's practice with a sore knee, he returned to practice on Wednesday.
"I'm in good shape and where I want to be," Vanderdoes said after the Raiders drafted him.
Perhaps more impressive is that Vanderdoes has elevated his play despite missing the entire offseason program following rookie minicamp because UCLA is on the quarter system. Then again, as a defensive player, his job is simply to attack the ball.
The Raiders anticipate Vanderdoes, who lines up next to NFL defensive player of the year Khalil Mack in the team's 4-3 base alignment, providing the push from the interior that was missing last season. Only three of the Raiders' league-low 25 sacks came from defensive tackles.
Call it the Vanderdoes Rules.
"That kind of player inside, with Bruce [Irvin] and Khalil rushing the outside, it's going to be a problem [for opponents], it really is," Carr said. "I'm really happy that we have [Vanderdoes] and he didn't go to another AFC West team and let them add another pass-rusher."
Paging the Denver Broncos' Von Miller, the Kansas City Chiefs' Dee Ford and the Los Angeles Chargers' Joey Bosa.
Yeah, Carr is content to face Vanderdoes in practice, thank you very much.