HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Christian Wilkins' release early in training camp raised all sorts of questions about how the Raiders' interior defense would make up the difference.
Las Vegas' tackles have for the most part made those concerns moot.
That includes Jonah Laulu, who already has three sacks in two games. He had one in 17 games as a rookie last season.
“He has just blossomed," coach Pete Carroll said. "He had enough plays on film coming off of last year that he caught my eye like a potential guy that might really be a factor. So I was really excited about him in the offseason, and he did everything right.”
Carroll might not be all that shocked that Laulu is making a strong impact early this season, but outside of the Raiders facility, he wasn't on many radars.
Indianapolis drafted him in the seventh round in 2024 out of Oklahoma, and he made to the final cut before the Colts waived him on Aug. 27 of last year. Laulu's hometown Raiders picked him up the following day.
He showed enough promise to start seven games last season on a defense ravaged by injuries, and then he built on that experience in this summer's camp.
“He works hard,” star pass rusher Maxx Crosby said. “He's doing great. He's young. He's got a lot of good tools and he's just getting better. No one's surprised he's playing well. He's just got to keep building off what he started.”
For Laulu, the battle to become an impact player is as much mental as physical, and he has been open about his struggles with impostor syndrome. Though not considered a mental health disorder, many medical experts take the condition seriously that affects many people who doubt they are qualified for their work positions.
That includes Laulu and the NFL.
“I feel like it's really about coming every day to work to be that same person every day,” Laulu said. “You want to be consistent. You don't want to be an emotional person. Obviously, football is not an easy sport mentally or physically. I'm trying to be my best every day.”
His best has been pretty good this season.
Laulu sacked New England quarterback Drake Maye once in the 20-13 season-opening victory and then took down Los Angeles Chargers QB Justin Herbert twice in Monday night's 20-9 loss.
The Raiders as a team have six sacks this season, tied for eighth in the NFL.
They will face a mobile quarterback Sunday at Washington in either Jayden Daniels or former Las Vegas QB Marcus Mariota. Daniels will not practice until at least Friday because of a knee injury.
“We have a lot of background about Marcus on the staff, so we know what his capabilities are, we think," Carroll said. “So we’re planning for both guys, but primarily for Jayden.”
Laulu will be an integral part of that plan, which he began to earn in offseason and preseason practices, showing he could perform alongside fellow tackles Adam Butler and Thomas Butler IV. It's one thing to play well in practice, but transferring that to the season is the real test.
So far, so good.
But Laulu isn't one to think he's arrived. Each week is a proving ground, a chance to show himself that he belongs.
“I still feel like I haven't really done much,” Laulu said. “I made some plays here and there, but I'm still shooting for the sky and trying to make plays in the game and get better every day. I'm the type of person, I made plays, but I could've made more after watching the (Chargers) game a couple of times, seeing all the missed opportunities and what I can do.”
Raiders quarterback Geno Smith tied a career high with three interceptions in the loss to the Chargers. That came a week after he passed for 362 yards and a touchdown against the Patriots.
Smith said the video from the LA loss "was tough to watch.”
“You can never just flush that,” Smith said. “You got to learn from it, and that’s what I did. I watched it over 10 times and just tried to figure out what did I need to do to be better, which was a lot of things that were obvious — being more accurate, taking what they give me, not being so aggressive.”
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Las Vegas Raiders defensive tackle Jonah Laulu (96) tackles Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert (10) during the first half of an NFL football game, Monday, Sept. 15, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/David Becker)
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. forces in the Caribbean Sea have seized another sanctioned oil tanker that the Trump administration says has ties to Venezuela, part of a broader U.S. effort to take control of the South American country’s oil.
The U.S. Coast Guard boarded the tanker, named Veronica, early Thursday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on social media. The ship had previously passed through Venezuelan waters and was operating in defiance of President Donald Trump’s "established quarantine of sanctioned vessels in the Caribbean,” she said.
U.S. Southern Command said Marines and sailors launched from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford to take part in the operation alongside a Coast Guard tactical team, which Noem said conducted the boarding as in previous raids. The military said the ship was seized “without incident.”
Several U.S. government social media accounts posted brief videos that appeared to show various parts of the ship’s capture. Black-and-white footage showed at least four helicopters approaching the ship before hovering over the deck while armed troops dropped down by rope. At least nine people could be seen on the deck of the ship.
The Veronica is the sixth sanctioned tanker seized by U.S. forces as part of the effort by Trump’s administration to control the production, refining and global distribution of Venezuela’s oil products and the fourth since the U.S. ouster of Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro in a surprise nighttime raid almost two weeks ago.
The Veronica last transmitted its location on Jan. 3 as being at anchor off the coast of Aruba, just north of Venezuela’s main oil terminal. According to the data it transmitted at the time, it was partially filled with crude.
The ship is currently listed as flying the flag of Guyana and is considered part of the shadow fleet that moves cargoes of oil in violation of U.S. sanctions.
According to its registration data, the ship also has been known as the Gallileo, owned and managed by a company in Russia. In addition, a tanker with the same registration number previously sailed under the name Pegas and was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department for moving cargoes of illicit Russian oil.
As with prior posts about such raids, Noem and the military framed the seizure as part of an effort to enforce the law. Noem argued that the multiple captures show that “there is no outrunning or escaping American justice.”
Speaking to reporters at the White House later Thursday, Noem declined to say how many sanctioned oil tankers the U.S. is tracking or whether the government is keeping tabs on freighters beyond the Caribbean Sea.
“I can’t speak to the specifics of the operation, although we are watching the entire shadow fleet and how they’re moving,” she told reporters.
However, other officials in Trump's Republican administration have made clear that they see the actions as a way to generate cash as they seek to rebuild Venezuela’s battered oil industry and restore its economy.
Trump met with executives from oil companies last week to discuss his goal of investing $100 billion in Venezuela to repair and upgrade its oil production and distribution. His administration has said it expects to sell at least 30 million to 50 million barrels of sanctioned Venezuelan oil.
This story has been corrected to show the Veronica is the fourth, not the third, tanker seized by U.S. forces since Maduro’s capture and the ship also has been known as the Gallileo, not the Galileo.
Associated Press writer Ben Finley contributed to this report.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks with reporters at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks with reporters at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks with reporters at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks with reporters at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks with reporters at the White House, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks during a press conference, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem speaks at a news conference at Harry Reid International Airport, Nov. 22, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Ronda Churchill, File)
