Part of the reason Antonio Pierce earned the full-time head coaching role after the 2023 season is due to the stellar performance from his defensive unit. The Las Vegas Raiders saw their Patrick Graham-led defense have one of their best statistical seasons in recent memory. That effort was spearheaded by team captain and middle linebacker Robert Spillane.
Spillane had a stellar season again in 2024. In a year marked by a variety of injuries across the unit, the veteran linebacker not only held strong when his team needed him most but also excelled throughout in key instances. Let’s take a closer look at Spillane’s 2024 season as a whole, including some big moments.
Las Vegas Raiders Player Review: Robert Spillane
Spillane’s best moments from 2024
Spillane did his best work this year as a tackler. However, some of his biggest moments came in pass defense. One of those came in the Raiders surprising win over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2. Just when Las Vegas was about to lose control, Spillane made a huge interception to keep his team in the game.
Robert Spillane swarmed to the ball and got the INT! #RavensFlock
#LVvsBAL on CBS/Paramount+
https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/rsbhJG4aJW— NFL (@NFL) September 15, 2024
That wasn’t the only time Spillane would make a big play on the ball, though. His other interception came late in the year in the Raiders loss to the Atlanta Falcons. This was another instance where the Raiders’ opponent held a lead and were marching down the field before Spillane came up with the massive pick.
PICKED! Robert Spillane comes down with the @Raiders INT
#ATLvsLV on ESPN
Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/W9FCAR9gru— NFL (@NFL) December 17, 2024
Aside from creating turnovers, Spillane was a sure tackler as well. He finished with double digits in total tackles a whopping eight times this year. No. 41 also tallied two sacks along with seven pass deflections this past season.
A summary of Robert Spillane’s 2024 season
Make no mistake, Spillane is a well-rounded linebacker. Still, while he can defend against the pass well, his bread and butter comes against the run. Spillane was ranked eighth out of 189 eligible linebackers against the pass by Pro Football Focus with an 87.3 grade.
His ability to be a sure tackler really shows up when comparing him to the rest of the league. It’s hard to blame PFF for their high ranking of the veteran linebacker. He amassed a whopping 158 combined tackles, good enough for the third-most in the NFL. He led the league after that stellar five-week stretch, in which he tallied double-digit totals in tackles in each of those five games.
Now, the Raiders do find themselves in a tough situation when it comes to Spillane. The two-year deal he signed before the 2023 season has now expired, and Spillane becomes a free agent on March 12th.
That’s not anything unfamiliar for the franchise, though. Several players, many of them on the defense, are hitting free agency. There are a number of players Las Vegas will work to retain before they branch out to other free agents. With the impact Spillane’s been able to make so far this year, he should be their first priority.
*Top Photo: Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images
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