Brian Hoyer - Stud
You may wonder why Brian Hoyer is listed as a stud but he deserves a ton of credit for keeping the offense moving in the second half. Starter Jimmy Garoppolo went out with a back injury and Hoyer stepped up in a major way.
In his first series and with just his second attempt of the game, Hoyer did something that Garoppolo has failed to do all year and that was connecting on a deep shot down the field. Hoyer connected with the speedy Tre Tucker for 48 yards and gave the Raiders an instant red zone opportunity.
The Raiders would fail to score a touchdown on that drive as they would two other times in the second half but Hoyer was able to move the chains between the 20s and keep the game out of reach for the most part for New England. We know that it can be difficult to come off the bench cold and contribute but Hoyer did so despite being booed initially by fans who have been calling for Aidan O’Connell to be the backup QB.
We don’t know Jimmy’s status for Week 7 against the Bears but at least we know that Hoyer can take a shot downfield if need be. The Raiders might go with O’Connell to start against Chicago but if there is a situation where Hoyer needs to step in we now know that he can handle it.