Buffalo Bills at Las Vegas Raiders: 3 things to watch in Week 4
By Daniel Davis
The Las Vegas Raiders are coming off a tough loss against New England and look to rebound against a Buffalo Bills team who mounted a huge comeback against the Rams last week.
The Las Vegas Raiders held their own against the Patriots last week for a half, but a missed field goal to open the second half ended up being a microcosm for the rest of the game. The defense could not tackle, and the offense just could not get Darren Waller involved.
Henry Ruggs was ruled out before the start of the game, so the offense was lacking that deep speed that historically New England defenses are susceptible to. Bill Belichick and the Patriots are very good at taking away your best weapon, and that they did. Darren Waller was covered all-day which forced Carr to go to different receivers. Waller only caught 2 passes on 4 targets for 9 yards, his lowest since 2018.
Rookie Bryan Edwards got involved with three targets and two catches for 48 yards, while Hunter Renfrow led the team in yards with 84 on six catches and touchdown.
In the running game, the team struggled to get production. The yards per rush were good as a team with a 6.3 average, but that was inflated by a couple of runs of 14,15 and 23 yards. Josh Jacobs struggled to stay consistent and rushed for 71 yards on 16 carries.
Jacobs ran hard and even recovered his own fumble on a blown call by the refs, which changed the game for the worse.
On the defensive side of the ball, Maxx Crosby continues to lead the team in sacks and got two on the elusive Cam Newton. Trayvon Mullen impressed in coverage breaking up four passes and allowing 1 catch for 8 yards on the day. Newton’s passer rating was less than 40 when targeting Mullen on the day.
The offseason addition of Cory Littleton hasn’t helped the defense at all this season as the Raiders are still giving up more than 20 points a game. It’s hard to win a game when you miss tackles, don’t get the running game going, and miss opportunities against a well-coached team.
Overall, the defense struggled in the second half which led to the demise of the Raiders and contributed to their first loss of the season. As they head into their matchup with the Bills, here are three things to keep an eye on.