The Las Vegas Raiders are starting to get bit by the injury bug. Defensive end Malcolm Koonce is done for the year and now the team will be missing another starting defender in Week 3.
The Raiders announced that linebacker Divine Deablo will be out against the Carolina Panthers.
DE Maxx Crosby (ankle) is QUESTIONABLE for the #Raiders while LB Divine Deablo (oblique/concussion) will be OUT against the #Panthers. pic.twitter.com/cv5Xr5pRvl
— Paul Gutierrez (@PGutierrezESPN) September 20, 2024
Deablo hasn't played well this season but the team was excited about him heading into the season. Not having him on the field will be a blow to the defense. Luke Masterson will likely take over starting duties but don't be surprised if Tommy Eichenberg sees the field a lot.
Perhaps the more concerning updates are that Maxx Crosby and Christian Wilkins are both questionable. They are the Raiders' best and most expensive defenders. Even losing one of them would be a blow. Crosby would likely die before missing his first career NFL game but the team should monitor his injury and save him from himself if he pushes too hard.
Luckily, the Raiders are facing arguably the NFL's worst team this week so they can afford to be missing a couple of players. It would be a much bigger deal if Crosby or Wilkins get hurt further and have to miss multiple games against tougher opponents.
If Las Vegas can't beat the Panthers even without Crosby or Wilkins, they aren't a playoff-level team anyway. One positive update is Tyree Wilson. While he's listed as questionable, head coach Antonio Pierce recently said that they plan for him to play. With Koonce out, the team desperately needs Wilson to start living up to his draft status.
He hasn't shown much yet but he also didn't play many snaps in Week 1 and didn't play at all in Week 2. With Crosby and Wilkins likely getting most of the attention from offenses, Wilson should face a lot of one-on-one situations.