In Year 2 under general manager Dave Ziegler and head coach Josh McDaniels, the Las Vegas Raiders shouldn’t accept moral victories. They have a lot to work on following a 23-18 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, the defense made some strides that may linger into Sunday’s contest with the Los Angeles Chargers.
We can’t blame the players for a poor play call that allowed the Steelers to move the chains on 3rd-and-2 and essentially sealed the game. On the other hand, we can acknowledge moments when defenders made plays.
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In particular, three Las Vegas Raiders defenders showed much-needed progress, but they must carry it over and do a little more to slow down the Los Angeles Chargers’ fifth-ranked scoring offense.
Let’s take a look at the trio of players other than Maxx Crosby, Nate Hobbs, and Divine Deablo who gained momentum leading up to the Raiders’ Week 4 matchup with the Chargers.
Defensive end Malcolm Koonce
Last week, for the first time this season, a Raiders defender other than Maxx Crosby recorded more than two hurries in a contest. Through three weeks, Malcolm Koonce had his most active game as a pass-rusher against the Steelers.
According to Pro Football Focus, Koonce logged three quarterback hurries in Week 3. Of course, the coaching staff wants to see pressures translate to actual sacks, but the Raiders should feel good about any amount of progress for their lackluster pass rush. They have the second-lowest pressure rate (14.2).
With Chandler Jones on the non-football illness list, Koonce or rookie first-rounder Tyree Wilson must make their presence felt near the line of scrimmage on passing downs. The former showed positive signs while the latter saw a significant reduction in playing time, down from 49 percent of the snaps to 18 percent over the last two weeks.
In his third year, Koonce has a chance to hit his stride while Jones works through a personal matter.
On Sunday, the defense has to make Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert uncomfortable in the pocket, and Crosby can’t accomplish that task alone. On the opposite side of the front line, Koonce could put his stamp on this AFC West battle.
Defensive tackle John Jenkins
Apparently, Las Vegas’ shaky defense didn’t cure all of Pittsburgh’s offensive ills.
Though the Steelers scored 23 points last week, their offense didn’t run up and down the field on the defense. Vegas allowed 3.4 yards per carry, which is a lot better than giving up 4.3 yards per rush attempt to the Denver Broncos and 5.2 yards per carry to the Buffalo Bills.
At the beginning of the game, Bilal Nichols set the tone for the run defense with a tackle for loss, though John Jenkins stood out most.
In Week 3, Jenkins led the Raiders in stops with five. For context, he didn’t record a stop in either of his first two games.
At 34 years old, Jenkins is playing far past his prime years, but he’s second behind only Nichols in snaps (104) among the club’s interior defenders. In fact, Jenkins has opened all three games in a starting role.
Finally, the Las Vegas Raiders saw some return from their modest one-year, $1.3 million investment in Jenkins. He’s clearly the veteran replacement for Johnathan Hankins, whom the front office dealt to the Dallas Cowboys before the 2022 trade deadline.
In an ideal scenario, rookie third-rounder Byron Young will eventually earn more snaps as a contributor on all three downs, but for now, Vegas’ defensive front needs Jenkins’ familiarity in Patrick Graham’s defense (2019 with the Miami Dolphins) to pay dividends.
According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, running back Austin Ekeler could return from an ankle injury. Keep in mind that Ekeler played a big role in the Chargers rushing for 233 yards against the Dolphins.
Even if Ekeler misses consecutive games, the Raiders can’t allow running back Joshua Kelley to help balance an offense that’s without wideout Mike Williams (torn ACL).
Cornerback Jakorian Bennett
Rookie fourth-rounder Jakorian Bennett had a low bar to scale, but he showed some flashes against Pittsburgh after allowing a perfect passer rating (158.3) in the matchup with the Buffalo Bills.
In Week 3, Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett targeted Bennett three times, and the first-year cornerback allowed one catch for 32 yards. Yes, he gave up a big play and drew a flag for defensive pass interference, but the Maryland product needed to show signs that he could hang with the starters.
Graham spoke on what he’s seen from Bennett, going back to the beginning of the draft evaluation process in Mobile, Alabama.
“He’s a real diligent young man,” Graham said to reporters. “It’s the same stuff I saw at the Senior Bowl and it’s really encouraging to see him grow each week. And when you see corners who can tackle, that’s always a positive.”
Bennett missed his first two tackles of the season last week, but he’s typically been solid in that department. The Raiders need him to trust his technique and cut down on penalties as a starter on the boundary.
Bennett could have had a much better Week 3 performance, but he allowed a 74.3 passer rating in coverage, which is a step in a positive direction at the right time ahead of a matchup with the Chargers’ third-ranked passing attack.
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Maurice Moton covers the Raiders for Sportsnaut. You can follow him on Twitter at @MoeMoton.