The Las Vegas Raiders were thoroughly outplayed in a 45-17 road loss to the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium, a performance that looked just as troubling on film as it did live. After a strong start to the season under new coach Klint Kubiak, the Raiders did almost nothing well against the Patriots, leaving the team to wonder whether they were exposed or simply suffered an uncharacteristic bad day.
Tight end Brock Bowers remained a rare bright spot, catching eight passes for 110 yards and a touchdown while the game was still competitive. However, the offense lacks balance; the Raiders need to establish a running game and involve their wide receivers more rather than relying solely on Bowers. Running back Dylan Laube scored his first career touchdown on a determined goal-line run in front of friends and family from his alma mater, the University of New Hampshire.
On defense, Adam Butler earned recognition for a forced fumble in the second quarter, fighting off a block to punch the ball loose from Corey Kiner while several teammates were blown off the line. Darien Porter recovered the turnover, but the offense failed to capitalize on the resulting field position while trailing 14-7.
Rookie quarterback Fernando Mendoza made his NFL debut on the final offensive drive, completing his first five passes against a vanilla scheme before the drive stalled on fourth down. Mendoza took responsibility for a missed read but showed effort scrambling for a first down. Earlier, Kubiak opted for a 46-yard Matt Gay field goal on fourth-and-13 in the third quarter, a decision that kept it a three-possession game before New England answered with a touchdown to put the contest away.
The defense endured its worst outing of the season, with blame spread across the unit. Very little stood out positively for the Raiders to build on as they look to rebound from the blowout.
Sources: Las Vegas Review-Journal
Original reporting: Las Vegas Review-Journal →
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