The Las Vegas Raiders' defense has wildly exceeded expectations through the first two weeks of the 2025 NFL season. Patrick Graham's group was largely turned over this offseason, but the experienced defensive coordinator has the unit playing at a high level again.
In Week 1, it was the defensive line that carried the load, making life difficult on the New England Patriots' young quarterback, Drake Maye. Week 2 was a different story, however, as the Los Angeles Chargers' underwhelming offensive line somehow bottled up the Raiders' front.
Star defensive end Maxx Crosby, in particular, was a bit disappointing, as he had a prime opportunity to dominate against a shaky Chargers right tackle in Trey Pipkins III. However, Crosby was rather pedestrian, and the Los Angeles offense had too much time to operate.
Maxx Crosby must bounce back with favorable Week 3 matchup
Against the Washington Commanders in Week 3, however, Crosby faces an even more lopsided matchup at the right tackle position. In fact, he'll be facing off against the Commanders' weakest link, rookie Josh Conerly Jr.
Conerly was a promising college prospect at Oregon and was drafted in the first round of this year's draft. But he has been a disaster through the first two weeks of the 2025 NFL season against the New York Giants and Green Bay Packers.
According to Pro Football Focus, Conerly is one of the worst offensive tackles in the league. His 42.2 overall grade ranks 86th out of 94 qualifying players at the position, and his pass-blocking score of 30.9 and run-blocking mark of 52.9 rank 79th and 72nd, respectively.
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He's given up four sacks already in just two games, as well as a total of 11 pressures. This includes six hurries and a quarterback hit in addition to the aforementioned sacks. Conerly has also been penalized twice in two games.
Washington will be moving veteran offensive lineman Andrew Wylie to right guard alongside Conerly in Week 3, according to NFL Insider Jordan Schultz. That is just another moving piece for the young player to keep track of, with star Maxx Crosby staring him right in the face.
Crosby needs to exploit this mismatch on Sunday and put ample pressure on Commanders backup quarterback Marcus Mariota. If he can accomplish this, Las Vegas should easily pull out a victory. But if he sputters once again or doesn't bring his best, it may be a dog fight.