The Las Vegas Raiders will face a Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense that has been elite this season in their Week 7 matchup in primetime.
The Las Vegas Raiders will have a lot of time to prepare for Tom Brady and this Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense, as they play them after the bye week on Sunday night. However, more attention should be paid to the Bucs defense, which is one of the best in the league this season.
So far, Las Vegas’ offense has been outstanding, scoring on better than 50 percent of their drives, and showing that they can get in the end zone through the air, and on the ground. Derek Carr is playing at an elite level, and the return of Henry Ruggs III last weekend gave them another elite deep threat alongside Nelson Agholor.
As they turn the page to Tampa Bay, they will be battling a defense that has dominated early on, proving to be arguably the Raiders biggest test of 2020 so far.
Fourth in the league in sacks
As a team, the Bucs went into Week 6 of the 2020 NFL season ranked fourth in the NFL in sacks, having gotten to the quarterback 17 times prior to the Green Bay game. Jason Pierre-Paul leads the way with four, Shaquill Barrett has three, and five other players have two, including rookie safety Antoine Winfield Jr.
Overall they have solid talent on all three levels of the defense, and they play opportunistic ball, as four players already have an interception, including Carlton Davis, who already has three. They are fast, smart, and aggressive, so that is something to keep an eye on next Sunday.
Elite run defense
In addition, they are also elite against the run, and only allow a measly 58 yards on the ground per game. They are second in the entire league in total yards allowed per game, but it is their dominant work against the rush that makes them a problem for any team they face.
Luckily for Las Vegas, they have an elite runner in Josh Jacobs, who will be the one of the top-two rushers they have faced this season. In their season opening loss to the New Orleans Saints, Alvin Kamara rushed for only 16 yards on 13 carries, so even against the best of the bunch, they are able to get the job done.
Las Vegas has shown this season that they can play with anybody, and this is going to be another early-season test that shows where the franchise currently stands. Playing inside Allegiant Stadium will give them an advantage, and they have had time to prepare, so hopefully Carr and his offense can continue their strong play against the best defense they have seen.