The 2020 matchup between the Las Vegas Raiders and the Indianapolis Colts will have well-known adversaries face off.
The Raiders are very familiar with the Colts main free agent acquisition, quarterback Philip Rivers. He led the rival Los Angeles (and San Diego) Chargers for years and was arguably the greatest signal-caller in the team’s history. The veteran Pro Bowler joined the Colts after the Chargers moved on with concerns about his age and declining performance. He’ll be 39 in December and saw his production take a steep downturn. Las year, his total touchdown passes went from 32 to 23.
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Old Man Rivers
Numbers aside, Rivers’ toughness on the field is unquestionable, something the Raiders know very well. This claim is backed by the fact that he has played in 224 of 228 regular-season games. To help protect their investment, the Colts made sure Anthony Castonzo returned as their starting left tackle. In 2019, the team’s top three targets were wide receivers T.Y. Hilton and Zach Pascal, along with tight end Jack Doyle. None of them reached 1,000 yards receiving or scored more than five touchdowns individually. You can expect these numbers to increase for all of these players with Rivers under center.
Defensive coordinator Paul Guenther’s unit will have its hands full with a talented veteran offense that now has a potential Hall of Famer at quarterback. As for Raiders quarterback Derek Carr, he’ll be busy dealing with a talented cornerback group. Xavier Rhodes leads the bunch and features Kenny Moore, Quincy Wilson, and Marvell Tell. Moreover, protecting Carr against the likes of veteran defensive end Justin Houston will be key. In 2019, he ended up with 11 sacks and totaled 28 quarterback pressures.
The Silver and Black cannot afford to look past “old man” Rivers and the Colts in their matchup, this has trap game potential written all over it.
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*Top Photo: Reed Hoffmann/Associated Press