ALAMEDA _ Raiders linebacker Ray-Ray Armstrong is a legitimate NFL prospect from snap to whistle.



After the whistle has blown, the prospect has sometimes become suspect because of the occasional personal foul, scuffle or running verbal battle.

Last season, St. Louis Rams coach Jeff Fisher abruptly cut Armstrong after a personal foul despite being a core special teams player. A waiver claim by the Raiders, Armstrong flashed the same kind of skill he did with St. Louis _ he even had three late-season starts _ as well as the penchant for penalties.

Fast forward to the Raiders mandatory minicamp, where Armstrong has been getting plenty of work as the first team weak side linebacker as incumbent Sio Moore slowly works his way back on the field following offseason hip surgery.

When it comes to post-whistle antics, Armstrong, at the urging of coach Jack Del Rio, claims to have seen the light.

“It was stuff after the play, getting into stuff I shouldn’t get into, hurting the team with a silly penalty,” Armstrong said. “I’m just going about carrying myself better.”

Del Rio told Armstrong early on he didn’t want raw emotion getting in the way of his athletic ability. And Armstrong was at the point where he was willing to listen.

“It’s something I took upon myself to do, as well as them telling me,” Armstrong said. “I put that all on me. I’m trying to change that mentality.”

Del Rio said Armstrong has “bought into the idea of maturing and being more disciplined in his play” and that the former college safety at Miami “has made great strides in developing himself along those lines.”

At 6-foot-3, 234 pounds, Armstrong adds to what looks to be the deepest and most athletic core of linebackers the franchise has seen in years. With second-year player Khalil Mack doing much of his work with his hand on the ground, it creates more snaps for players such as Armstrong, free agent acquisition Malcolm Smith, draft picks Ben Heeney and Neiron Ball, as well as Moore.

The complex defensive schemes of Jason Tarver have given way to a condensed playbook under Del Rio and defensive coordinator Ken Norton Jr. designed to allow athletes to play faster and flow to the ball.

“The scheme that we have now, it fits everyone, because everyone can run,” Armstrong said. “I think it fits us well.”

Count Armstrong as the latest defender to enjoy the constant stream of energy from Norton.

“He just allows you to be yourself,” Armstrong said. “He’s just like us. He might talk more than us. He’s yelling and screaming more than the players are, he gets everyone into it and makes practice fun. You’re not going to look at him and go, `Oh, man, where’s coach at? You don’t hear him today.’ He’s going to be in your ear, and that helps you to be yourself and play ball.”