ALAMEDA — The Raiders probably waited two weeks too long to give top pick Karl Joseph a look with their starting defense.

The rookie safety was solid in his starting debut last week and the Raiders are hoping he builds upon that performance when they face the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.

“There’s room for growth,” Raiders coach Jack Del Rio said, “but it was a good start.”

Del Rio thought Joseph provided a spark and his teammates in the secondary were impressed.

“He came in there and competed,” cornerback David Amerson said. “He knew what to do and made all the calls. He really didn’t miss a beat. He was well-prepared.”

Free safety Reggie Nelson said “it was a good call” to get Joseph out there with the starting defense after he delivered his 10-tackle performance.

Defensive coordinator Ken Norton Jr. was excited just to finally see Joseph on the field after the No. 14 overall pick hadn’t played a snap of defense in a regular season game since tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in the fourth game of his senior season at West Virginia.

“It’s been a long time since he’s played,” Norton said. “Had a great training camp and was really waiting to get back on the field. He shows you that he can play.

“It’s a matter of him understanding, getting a lot of confidence in what he’s doing, really learning this game. The NFL teaches you a lot of stuff. It’s about experiences and right now he’s at that age where a lot of experiences are going to come up for him and he has to understand what they are and make the best of them.”

The same could be said for middle linebacker Cory James, who took over the starting job last week for Ben Heeney.

“I was excited for the opportunity and that coach Del Rio believed in me, in the rookie, to get the start,” said James, a sixth-round pick out of Colorado State.

James finished with six tackles, all solo, including one for a loss.

“It really went the way we hoped,” Del Rio said of James’ starting debut. “He went in. Don’t feel like the moment is too big for him. We feel like he settled in and competed. We’ll clean a few things up with technique and making sure the eyes are exactly where they belong, all those kinds of things, but he plays hard. He’s got a little ruggedness to him. So yeah, he did a good job.”

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