The Las Vegas Raiders host the Buffalo Bills this week in what is their third of four straight games against top-flight competition. After winning three games against against bottom-dwellers to start the season (the Miami Dolphins and Los Angeles Chargers are winless, while the New Orleans Saints are 1-4), the Raiders have dropped consecutive contests against the Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots. Their schedule isn’t any easier this week or next, as they face off against the Bills before
taking on the Los Angeles Rams on October 25.
Are the Raiders for real? Is their 3-2 start a product of an easy schedule? Given the talent they have on offense combined with the Bills’ defensive woes, this isn’t a game that anyone should feel comfortable filing into the win column before it’s played.
If the Bills want to earn their way to a 5-1 record heading into their bye week, they’ll need to take care of business against a solid Raiders squad. Here are five Raiders we’re watching this weekend against the Bills.
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QB Kirk Cousins
For the second consecutive week, Buffalo faces a veteran quarterback with tremendous accuracy. The plan this week has to be the same as it was for Matthew Stafford, at least as it relates to the pass rush. If Buffalo can blitz Cousins and force him to make off-platform throws, they’ll be able to help their struggling defensive secondary. For at least a half of football, Buffalo was able to bend without breaking against the Rams. Cousins isn’t quite on the level of Stafford, but he’s accurate enough to beat them repeatedly if he’s given time to work in the pocket. If Buffalo can create pressure, they can keep him from picking them apart. I think adding an extra rusher on occasion early will speed him up, which should let the Bills flow into more simulated pressure looks later in the contest that will lead to a turnover.
WR Tre Tucker
Vegas’ tight ends steal much of the press, but the speedy Tucker is a very good receiver in his own right. Buffalo hasn’t exactly been competent in pass defense this season—and that’s putting it lightly, as the team is currently 31st in passing yards allowed—so any team’s top receiving options should be viewed as threats. While the Raiders might also have a strong running back in Aston Jeanty, the Bills have been fine against the run, ranking fifteenth in yards allowed there. The pass defense is what gives me the most digestive discomfort, and Tucker has the speed to beat the Bills at multiple levels of the defense. If he’s working in the slot, something he does just around 18% of the time this season, he’s especially dangerous. In those situations, he’d be matched up against Dee Alford, or a linebacker, or a safety. If he’s outside, Christian Benford will likely see plenty of reps against Tucker, and that’s a matchup I like for the Bills. Davison Igbinosun and Maxwell Hairston will have to avoid penalties and excess separation, respectively, if they want to limit the Raiders’ top deep threat.
TE Brock Bowers
Bowers is arguably the best tight end in football, so there isn’t a team in the league who’s happy to face him. For a Buffalo pass defense that couldn’t cover a tray of lasagna with Reynolds Wrap of late, this is a matchup nightmare. Honestly, Buffalo might want to watch film of other teams and their bracket coverages against Dalton Kincaid for some ideas about how to limit Bowers. Kincaid has been absolutely erased over the last few weeks, and while I don’t think Buffalo has the defensive talent in the secondary to do that to Bowers, they need to try something to make anyone other than him beat them in the passing game on Sunday. On Monday night, it seemed like Buffalo was intent on making anyone other than Davante Adams beating them, and Puka Nacua caught 17 passes on an absurd 24 targets. The Bills need to make it difficult to target Bowers on Sunday. They can’t let him operate in the middle of the field like they allowed Nacua to operate last week.
DE Maxx Crosby
Crosby sure would look good in a Bills uniform, but for now, Buffalo will have to figure out a way to keep him off of quarterback Josh Allen for the week. Crosby has two sacks this season to go with 13 quarterback hits. He looks to be fully healthy after dealing with a knee issue last season. While the Bills’ offensive line has been excellent in run blocking, they haven’t been as good in pass protection this season. Last week, they held up well against a tough Los Angeles Rams front even with Tylan Grable playing right tackle in place of starter Spencer Brown for much of the game. Brown is likely to return this week, but he and Dion Dawkins will have their hands full with Crosby on Sunday.
LB Nakobe Dean
Dean is a tackling machine, but he’s also been abysmal in coverage this season. According to Pro Football Reference, he’s allowed 13-of-15 passes to be completed when he’s the closest player in coverage. Those passes have gone for 114 yards and a touchdown. Dalton Kincaid, Dawson Knox, Khalil Shakir, Ty Johnson—the Bills have plenty of receiving options to stress the intermediate and short areas of the field where Dean will likely be the closest man in coverage. After designing a screen game that worked beautifully against the Los Angeles Rams, it seems that the Bills have a plan to exploit that area that doesn’t involve the ways they’ve done it in the past, where they ran crossers and “mesh” concepts ad nauseum. Dean is a great player, and he’s forced three fumbles this season already, which should put James Cook III on high alert, but he can be exploited in coverage.
