A hot name in the post-draft chatter for the Las Vegas Raiders is Laki Tasi.
Our Tristen Kuhn noted this week that Tasi was working the defensive line in the voluntary minicamp last week. Social-media photos from the team confirmed that the Raiders signed Tasi as a defensive tackle last year, but quickly moved him to the offensive line.
Now, the new coaching staff has him back at defensive tackle, where the team need some nose tackles. Tasi certainly fits the profile of a nose tackle at 6-foot-6 and
about 340 pounds.
Whatever position Tasi plays, patience will be the key.
The Raiders signed Tasi the week after last year’s draft through the International Player Pathway Program. He began playing football in 2024 via the NFL Academy in Gold Coast, Queensland. Tasi was born in Samoa but grew up in Brisbane, Australia, where he became a standout rugby player.
His preseason play last seoans was his first true game action, and that was all as an offensive player. Now, this summer, barring a switch back to the offensive line, Tasi will get his first game time as a defensive player.
Tasi goes have raw ability. Last summer, then coach Pete Carroll was very complimentary of him.
“My favorite guy out there to watch is Laki Tasi,” Carroll said last summer. “He knows nothing about football when he walked in the door and he’s made tremendous progress, and he’s enormous. He’s the biggest guy you ever saw. I think he weighed in at weigh-ins the other day at 369. He’s learning and we got to keep an eye on him. It’s an exciting process. I don’t know how long it’s going to take, but he’s starting from ground zero, and he’s made a lot of progress so far.”
Tasi very likely will be back on the practice squad this season as he continues to learn the game now from a defensive perspective.
