Meanwhile, Raiders’ first-year offensive coordinator Chip Kelly was familiar with Laube before taking the job, what with their shared New Hampshire lineage. Even as Kelly predated Laube on the Durham, N.H., campus by more than three decades and did not meet him until he came to Las Vegas.
“When I got here, you could just tell he had an amazing work ethic,” Kelly said of Laube. “You could tell all the players on the team really respected him because of how he takes care of himself in the weight room, how he attacks the meeting room, how he attacks special teams. … He was a superstar at the FCS level at New Hampshire, and rightly so, because he’s a heck of a football player.”
Kelly also lauded how eager Laube is to pitch in, no matter the role.
“If we told him, ‘Hey, we’re going to switch and you go play defense,’ he’d be like, ‘Alright, where do you want me to play?’
“I mean, he’s got that type of mindset. So, you need guys like that. He’s a glue guy on this team. And I think all teams need people like Dylan on their team.”
Another fine line for Laube to straddle. Especially as he gets more offensive touches.
“It also shows that the team has trust in me, too,” Laube said. “Coming from my first snap on offense with a fumble, man, it could definitely take a toll on you. … I’m just so much more comfortable. I’m so much more prepared compared to Year 1, where you don’t know what to expect. Of course, it’s the NFL, it’s the best of the best, but that Year 1 to Year 2 jump is so different, man. You’re so much more comfortable. You know what to expect.
“It just shows that they truly trust me now, and it’s just a cool feeling because now you’ve got guys behind you that just love your energy and love your enthusiasm and it’s truly special and I think this team is going to go so far with that.”