Devin White, Raiders' defense torment Titans to break losing streak

Las Vegas Raiders linebacker Devin White (45) celebrates after making an interception against the Tennessee Titans during the first half of a NFL football game at Allegiant Stadium Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025. Photo by: Wade Vandervort

The Raiders raved about how veteran, former All-Pro linebacker Devin White looked “back” to his old self during training camp this summer.

On Sunday, the 27-year-old Super Bowl champion got to show the football world. White led a defensive effort for the Raiders that disassembled the Tennessee Titans 20-10 and helped the former snap a four-game losing streak in front of their home fans at Allegiant Stadium.

White, a seventh-year player who was the fifth overall pick to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2019 NFL Draft, led the team with nine tackles, a sack and two takeaways. He directly set up the Raiders’ first touchdown, leveling top-overall draft pick/rookie quarterback Cam Ward at the Titans’ 1-yard line and causing a fumble.

Edge rusher Tyree Wilson jumped on the loose ball, and Las Vegas scored three plays later when Geno Smith bought time in the pocket and found tight end Michael Mayer for a 4-yard touchdown pass.   

That would prove enough as the Titans never as much threatened to cut the deficit down to single digits until the final two minutes of the game.  

White and Co. didn’t give them many opportunities. Tennessee’s offensive line had shown major improvement in the team’s first win last week, a 22-21 comeback victory over the Arizona Cardinals, but Las Vegas’ defensive line sent the unit spiraling back down.

The Raiders totaled five sacks and three more quarterback hits with four different players dropping Ward at least once.

Las Vegas’ season-long leader in sacks, Jonah Laulu, got the pressure party started by putting Ward down nine yards behind the line of scrimmage on Tennessee’s second drive.

It helped ensure the Titans would have no chance to immediately answer a 50-yard field goal from Daniel Carlson on the Raiders’ opening drive.

Team captain Maxx Crosby got his turn to deposit Ward in the grass in the second quarter with a crucial third-down stop shortly after Mayer’s touchdown. Crosby, unsurprisingly, was the other defensive standout next to White with two sacks and two tackles for loss.

Crosby was in Ward’s face all day, and White seemed to be around the ball on every play. The linebacker even notched his first interception in two years right before halftime, when Laulu hit Ward and forced an errant, pop-up of a throw. White got under it to wrap up the half as the Raiders went into the locker room with a double-digit lead.

They added to it eight minutes into the second quarter when rookie running back Ashton Jeanty pushed in a three-yard touchdown to cap a nine-play, 70-yard drive.

Las Vegas’ offense went through Jeanty on Sunday, as he piled up 86 scrimmage yards on 25 touches. Smith was better than he had been the last four weeks with 147 passing yards off of completing 17 of 23 attempts but still extended his lead for interceptions in the NFL with a throw right to Titans linebacker Cody Barton early in the fourth quarter.

The turnover could have been crippling as it came just outside of the red zone with the Raiders driving to put the game away, but the defense held strong and forced a three-and-out.

The Titans didn’t score again until three minutes remained in the game, when Ward took advantage of the Raiders defense playing conservatively and led a 12-play, 62-yard scoring drive. The quarterback found David Martin-Robinson for the second-year tight end’s first career touchdown catch — and only second-ever reception.

Las Vegas then went into drain-the-clock mode, wasting 5:14 of game time and deciding to punt the ball back to Tennessee instead of trot Carlson out for another 50-plus yard field goal. Crosby immediately sacked Ward again, and got into a brief shoving match with the quarterback.

It was short-lived as the Raiders ended the game four plays later when defensive tackle Leki Fotu blasted Ward for a strip-sack with Thomas Booker recovering the loose ball.

White, Crosby and the Raiders will need to build on the defensive momentum next week when they travel to take on the archirval, nine-time defending AFC West champion Kansas City Chiefs.

This is a developing story. Check back later for more coverage.