Las Vegas Raiders at New England Patriots: Studs and Duds
Las Vegas Raiders at New England Patriots: Studs and Duds
Studs
The Defense (in the first half)
If all we had to take away from Sunday’s defensive performance was the tape from the first half, the Raiders would be in pretty good shape. The Raiders held the Patriots to just 13 points in the first half and were able to contain their potent rushing attack until the last 2-3 minutes of the second quarter.
The defensive backs and linebackers were swarming, the defensive line was creating havoc in the backfield, and former MVP Cam Newton looked uncomfortable in the pocket. It was as picture perfect a gameplan as Paul Guenther could have devised but unfortunately, the game doesn’t end after two quarters and the second half was another story.
Hunter Renfrow
Hunter Renfrow stepped up big time in the absence of Henry Ruggs and Bryan Edwards being hobbled and had his best game of the season. Renfrow had 6 catches for 84 yards and a touchdown but his highlight play was a 27-yard catch that set up a touchdown just before the end of the first half.
The throw was perfect from Derek Carr but Renfrow had some work to do to secure the catch while being hit by two Patriot defensive backs.
His touchdown came in garbage time, but the majority of his yards came when the result was still in doubt. It was great to see that Renfrow and Carr still have that chemistry and that they can do damage more than 10 yards downfield.
Trayvon Mullen
The Raiders might have a true shutdown corner in Trayvon Mullen. The second year cornerback continues his great 2020 with a terrific performance against the Patriots as he batted down three passes in the game. The rest of the defensive backs struggled at times but Mullen was the standout of the unit and is looking like he could be the next great Raider corner.
Maxx Crosby
This was not a vintage game by the Raiders defensive line but it was nice to see Madd Maxx Crosby get on the board with his first sacks of the season. Crosby had two sacks on Sunday after getting shut out against Carolina and New Orleans and his first was timely as it made up for a silly offsides as the Patriots were lined up to punt in the first quarter.
The second-year defensive end had 10 sacks in his rookie year and the Raiders will need him to match that at the very least if they’re to have a competent pass rush in 2020. Maybe finally getting his hands on a QB will propel the Condor to greater heights in future weeks.