Read the full transcript from S Dante Trader Jr.'s postgame media availability on September 14, 2026.
How did it feel to get that first NFL interception?
Dante Trader: It was bittersweet, especially since last night I spent time visualizing making plays. I feel like the mind is a powerful thing and just going out there and seeing it so you can react and not hesitate going out there and making the plays. Kind of like certain simulations in your head, like how you can make plays, I was doing that the night before and then when I was in the moment, everything slowed down because I kind of recognized the play and recognized the formation. Then after that, I was just like, all right, now let's make more plays. Like a 'finally' moment, like, 'come on, bro.' Like that type of feeling after.
What was your message to Chris Johnson after the Raiders seemingly kind of picked on him throughout the entire game?
Dante Trader: There's a lot scheme wise that was out of his control, that he could have had help in certain situations. He's always going to be hard on himself. And again, I've been there, so I was like, listen, let this be your worst game and if this is going to be your worst game, shoot, you're going to have a great career. Because again, I was like, I've been there and got beat up for it and had to respond because we need him. And he made some big plays, big tackles, big coverage points. It's like, 'hey, bro, the pressure is going to be on, but it's a privilege to have that pressure.' He's a baller at the end of the day and don't let this carry over to the next week.
Both you and Michael Taaffe came away with big interceptions to try to spark a comeback. What does this say about the potential of this young safety group despite the overall team loss?
Dante Trader: That we have the potential. Just speaking for myself, I haven't done anything in this league. So being able to make plays and get some more popping plays on tape and just allow the coaches to get more confidence that we can do more things in the back end and they can trust us more in that sense. Ultimately, just doing our job and, you know, allows us to keep continuing to make plays.
Wanted to ask what you thought about the safety rotation in Week 1. Was it important for you to start? And then what do you think of how you guys went in and out and got into the game?
Dante Trader: They've been pretty transparent about the rotation, how they view us and open communication, everything like that. Any competitor in National Football League wants to be a starter, they want to have many roles and go out there first. But at the end of the day, just the rotation, how it went, and I feel like we all handled the situation and continue to handle it. And as the year goes on, we're going to all need each other. It's a lot of games, a lot of wear and tear on the body, so being able to rotate in and out and not have a drop off is what the coaches want from us.
I heard from a couple of the guys – Coach Hafley, Zach Sieler just talked about this, Jacob Rodriguez yesterday – talking about getting to third and pass. What do you think is the key for this defense to be more stout in the early downs to create the opportunities to be more exotic on third downs?
Dante Trader: At the end of the day, early down comes with violence in doing our jobs and being in our gaps, being where we're supposed to be. Because when you get into these third-and-2s and third-and-1s and third-and-3s, it's hard to make a defensive call. And the offense can really just do anything they want and the percentage is low for us to be able to get stops. We've got a couple of stops, but at the end of the day, it starts on the early downs, just tightening up on the run. And it's closing downs, so now you're getting to the third-and-5-pluses, and now you can get more exotic where you're expecting more passes instead of run.
What does the team need to do better in the special teams area? Especially on coverage teams?
Dante Trader: It comes down to just doing our job – lane integrity, just preparing and doing more during the week. We try harder, that's ultimately it. Special teams is a want to and a choice at the end of the day. Being able to do our jobs allows us to have more lane integrity so things don't pop in and out. We all just gotta to be more clean at the end of the day.
And what were your impressions from Jacob Rodriguez in his first game?
Dante Trader: His poise is crazy. He's very, very calm. His presence is calming to everybody else. To be a rookie to go out there with the green dot, making all the tackles, commanding the defense and just being a dawg at the end of the day, it's infectious, especially, next to Jordyn Brooks. His play is infectious too. So just having both of them out there having the ability to play around, it's going to be a fun year.
