Antonio Pierce made a business decision to win a football game, and the Las Vegas Raiders reaped the benefits.
Things can change quickly in the National Football League; a fact the Las Vegas Raiders seem to prove true each week. One week Gardner Minshew is leading Sin City to a comeback win against the powerhouse Baltimore Ravens on the road, and the following week is a blowout loss at home against the winless Carolina Panthers.
And right when you’re ready to claim the Silver and Black are dead in the water, they pick up a win against the Cleveland Browns, who made the postseason last year, with their two best players being inactive.
Just what are the Las Vegas Raiders?
That question doesn’t need to be answered right now. In fact, the Kansas City Chiefs are the only team in the AFC who know what they are. The Buffalo Bills thought they knew what they were entering Week 4, but after a 25-point loss at the hands of the same Ravens team who lost to the Raiders in Week 2, they join everyone else at the drawing board.
But being at the drawing board four weeks into the season is no cause for panic. That’s exactly why no player or coach was caught up in the Week 3 blowout, similar to how Buffalo isn’t going to pack it in after losing big on national television in Week 4. Instead of panicking, the Silver and Black marched onto the field without Maxx Crosby and Davante Adams against Cleveland and earned a win.
That’s what playoff teams do – not only find ways to win, but come back strong after an ugly loss. The Raiders have done that twice already.
We’re a long way from playoff-talk, however, but it’s certainly a start.
Business decisions: Antonio Pierce leads Las Vegas Raiders to Week 4 win
“I think there was definitely some individuals that made business decisions, and we’ll make business decisions going forward as well.”
Antonio Pierce was anything but happy with his team’s effort in Week 3 once they started falling behind. In Pierce’s eyes, select players decided to waive the white flag and save their energy for next week mid-game.
He made sure that wasn’t the case in Week 4.
The Raiders came out firing on all cylinders, showing notable improvements on both sides of the football. There was no lapse in energy at any point during Sunday’s contest, either.
Las Vegas’ offensive line headed into the week allowing an average of four sacks per game. The unit cut that number in half against Cleveland, surrendering two sacks to reigning Defensive Player of the Year Myles Garrett. No other Browns defender hit home against the Raiders.
Sin City’s rushing game turned a new leaf, too.
Heading into Week 4, no team league-wide was responsible for less rushing yards per contest than the Raiders. You wouldn’t know that looking at the 154 yards and two touchdowns all non-quarterback rushers totaled, however.
Six different players ran the ball on designed runs, each ending their day with double-digit rushing yards; Tre Tucker aside, whose three yard rush resulted in six points. Alexander Mattison led the pack with 60 yards on five attempts while D.J. Turner joined Tucker in the touchdown-scorer column.
Zamir White did continue to struggle, though, totaling 50 yards on 17 carries.
Pierce kept his word about making decisions himself, too. Jack Jones, the Raiders’ ballhawk cornerback, spent the first few drives off the field. If the Raiders want to make noise this season, that must be the last business decision anyone makes.
No Maxx Crosby, no Marcus Epps, no problem
For the first time since being drafted in 2019, Maxx Crosby didn’t play in an NFL game. In addition to experiencing life without Crosby, the Raiders played their first game without veteran safety Marcus Epps who suffered a season-ending injury last week.
Fortunately for Las Vegas, their fill-ins performed exceptionally.
Tyree Wilson and Charles Snowden each recorded five pressures, tying for the sixth-most pressures league-wide at their position in Week 4. Wilson was responsible for two quarterback hits, the second-most across the NFL among edge rushers, while Snowden secured a game-ending sack on fourth down.
Both players earned a pass-rush grade over 70.0 via Pro Football Focus, with Wilson’s 82.7 overall grade being the highest grade earned by any Raider at any position.
Janarius Robinson and Christian Wilkins also got involved in a sack, along with Isaiah Pola-Mao who filled in for Marcus Epps during what was the first start of his career.
Taking down Deshaun Watson was just one of the great things Pola-Mao did on Sunday. With five minutes left on the clock, the 25-year-old broke up a would-be first down on third.
For his efforts, Pola-Mao earned a 78.2 grade; the eighth-highest among all safeties this week.
Robert Spillane was masterful as well, but that’s to be expected at this point. His 12 solo tackles was the second-most any defender totaled in Week 4.
The Bottom Line
As things stand, the Las Vegas Raiders hold a 2-2 record with the Denver Broncos up next on the schedule. Denver has yet to beat the Silver and Black since their move to Vegas, but with the type of season Sin City is having, that may be the exact reason to believe the Broncos will finally end that streak.
In the meantime, it’s important Antonio Pierce keeps his team focused after such a victory. The Raiders simply cannot suffer another ugly loss immediately after a gutsy win if they wish to do damage this season.
“I don’t want to be too happy because we want to stack wins,” Pierce said after Sunday’s contest. “We’re not gonna sit there like we won the Super Bowl because we won a game.”
If Las Vegas buys into that attitude, they may find themselves playing extra matches in January. As things stand, the Raiders’ 2-2 record ties with six other teams for the first wildcard spot. Taking care of the 2-2 Broncos will go a long way in making their playoff hopes a reality.
*Top Photo: AP Photo/ David Becker