Second-round pick Menelik Watson didn't have a great season last year. He arrived at his first training camp with an injured calf which forced him to sit out off the preseason. He also had a knee injury right before the regular season had started which was frustrating for the athlete.

When he got better, he had limited playing time and had to play as a sixth offensive lineman. For Watson "It was frustrating last year. I'd wish that on nobody, especially as a new guy coming in. ''I love this game. It was a lot to have it taken away last year. This is a new year. Last year is behind me. That's where it's going to stay."

But Watson stayed positive. He used the time to heal his body making sure to condition his physique and monitor his food and water intake. Aside from that, he has also studied how veterans prepare themselves for the game which was crucial for a football rookie.

Football is not Watson's first sports. He played basketball and boxing for one year in junior college.

But offensive coordinator Greg Olson saw a potential for the athlete saying "You don't see men of his size with the kind of feet that he has. We've seen growth from him. We'll know more when we get into live situations, but we've got high expectations and he has high expectations as well."

Because of their confidence in Watson, they decided to move free-agent addition Austin Howard from right tackle to guard. Watson is now focused in securing the job given to him saying "Ever since after the season was over and that last game I had a mission in mind, which was to get my body back to where it needs to be. It's just the beginning. I guess its part of the reason why I really haven't talked with the media because it's really been about action and not about talking anymore. ... Coming up nobody knew who I was and back then it was all about action. Just trying to get back to that."

Now that the new season for the NFL is up coning, Watson is excited to finally be able to show his skills in the field. "I can't imagine when it's game day. Going to be mental. There are a lot of Raiders fans out there too. There are a couple of Miami fans but there will be a lot of Raider fans too. It's going to be a great atmosphere. I can't imagine what it will be like on game day running out there with that flag."