{"id":456531,"date":"2026-02-03T22:11:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-03T22:11:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/456531\/"},"modified":"2026-02-03T22:11:09","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T22:11:09","slug":"hear-from-las-vegas-raiders-2026-nfl-draft-prospect-alabama-nose-tackle-tim-keenan-iii-at-senior-bowl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/456531\/","title":{"rendered":"Hear from Las Vegas Raiders 2026 NFL draft prospect Alabama nose tackle Tim Keenan III at Senior Bowl"},"content":{"rendered":"

MOBILE, Ala. \u2014 The Las Vegas Raiders could use some extra beef in the middle of their defensive line, as nose tackle is one of the Raiders\u2019 needs heading into the 2026 NFL draft<\/a>. That should put Alabama\u2019s Tim Keenan III, who stands at 6-foot-1, 332 pounds, on the team\u2019s radar. So, let\u2019s get to know Keenan a little more, as I got a chance to sit in on his press conference during the Senior Bowl<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Q: How do you think your background has helped you coming into this week?<\/p>\n

TK: I know I\u2019m battle tested, so this ain\u2019t nothing but putting that belt on the line and showing what I\u2019m made of. So I don\u2019t really have a problem with going against good competition. I have homefield advantage, too. I know we\u2019re not in Birmingham (Keenan\u2019s hometown), but it\u2019s Alabama, so I\u2019m good.<\/p>\n

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Q: What do you want to show this week?<\/p>\n

TK: My leadership, how I get guys going, how I make everybody\u2019s job around me easy, and just disrupting. Showing my speed and having some really nice reps in one-on-ones.<\/p>\n

Q: What\u2019s one thing that you need to improve on as a player and show at the Senior Bowl?<\/p>\n

TK: My pass-rush ability. [The NFL scouts] know I can pass rush, I can collapse the pocket. But just giving them no 50\/50, no questions about me.<\/p>\n

Q: Why was it important for you to get out here and throw yourself in the fire even though your talent and tape speak for themselves?<\/p>\n

TK: To show I can compete in anything and put that belt on the line. You can say you\u2019re the best and this and that, but are you willing to come put your abilities to the test in front of other people who might say they\u2019re better than you? Come put your showcase on the line.<\/p>\n

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Q: Growing up, when did you know you were going to be one of the biggest dudes on the field?<\/p>\n

TK: Probably at like eight years old, something like that.<\/p>\n

Q: Is this (330 pounds) your playing weight that you\u2019re at right now?<\/p>\n

TK: It fluctuates between 320 and 330.<\/p>\n

Q: Do you feel more comfortable in an odd or even front system?<\/p>\n

TK: I don\u2019t feel uncomfortable in either one. So as far as the scheme, I know I\u2019ll be able to adapt to whatever.<\/p>\n

Q: What does football mean to you, and how has it helped you grow as a person?<\/p>\n

TK: It means the world to me. From the structure, the teamwork, the principles and the discipline it brings, it\u2019s amazing. The things that you learn from it, that you take into your everyday life, I feel like it\u2019ll be hard to live without football.<\/p>\n

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Q: What\u2019s something you take away from Bama?<\/p>\n

TK: Excellence is a must. You must be excellent in everything you do, and if you\u2019re not excellent, you got to be great. So it\u2019s a high standard for a lot of stuff.<\/p>\n

Q: How is your experience at Alabama going to help you in the NFL?<\/p>\n

\"Tim<\/p>\n

Tim Keenan III<\/p>\n

TK: Playing in two systems. Playing in Coach [Nick] Saban\u2019s system, where there\u2019s a lot of checks and audibles, and then just being able to line up and play in [defensive coordinator Kane] Womack\u2019s system, I had the best of both worlds. So now I\u2019m able to adapt to anything.<\/p>\n

Q: Who are some guys who you like to watch in the NFL and try to model your game after?<\/p>\n

TK: The Bama guys, especially Quinnen Williams and Daron Payne. Maliek Collins and Aaron Donald, also.<\/p>\n

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Q: What have you taken from them?<\/p>\n

TK: Malik Collins, the way he sets people up in his pass rush. Quinnen Williams, just how he\u2019s efficient and a technician. Daron Payne, his power and his ability to run to the ball. Aaron Donald, he speaks for himself.<\/p>\n

Q: Do you have a relationship with the Bama guys, Williams and Payne?<\/p>\n

TK: I definitely do, especially being from Birmingham and all, the same city [they\u2019re from]. I can hit them up to get insight on what I need to learn. They are the greatest big brothers ever.<\/p>\n

Q: What\u2019s the key to being a good run defender?<\/p>\n

TK: Mentality and pride. You gotta be a different type of man. You\u2019re gonna get two 6-foot-5, probably 330-plus-pound men trying to put you on your back in front of your mama. So it\u2019s like, what are you gonna do at this point? You know, your girlfriend or somebody may be watching. You aren\u2019t gonna do me like that. That\u2019s just really what it is, mentality and pride.<\/p>\n

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Q: What work did you put in to make sure you have the good hand work that you do have?<\/p>\n

TK: With me being 6-foot-2, I ain\u2019t 6-foot-5, so I ain\u2019t got the arm length that some of these guys have. Some of these guys can touch their knees standing up. So, I have to make sure I get my hands inside, get them on the offensive lineman quick, because the first person that strikes and gets their feet across the line, they win.<\/p>\n

Q: What does it say about you that you don\u2019t have the typical height but are still making your way to the NFL?<\/p>\n

TK: It shows the dog in my heart. At the end of the day, Goliath was an 11-foot giant, and David was a little boy. You know who got the win at the end of that. So I\u2019ve been slaying giants all my life. Sometimes I had a lot of stuff that I was dealing with, so I\u2019m ready for adversity or whatever.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"MOBILE, Ala. \u2014 The Las Vegas Raiders could use some extra beef in the middle of their defensive…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":456532,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[559],"tags":[146495,3368,64,63,163892,232543,235193,235191,235192,1250,176413,593,150858,225533,85,235190],"class_list":["post-456531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nfl","tag-aaron-donald","tag-alabama","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-daron-payne","tag-defensive-lineman","tag-eastern-illinois","tag-gary-cosby","tag-gary-cosby-jr","tag-las-vegas-raiders","tag-maliek-collins","tag-nfl","tag-quinnen-williams","tag-senior-bowl","tag-sports","tag-tim-keenan"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/456531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=456531"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/456531\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/456532"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=456531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=456531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=456531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}