Las Vegas Raiders: Studs and duds from wild win over Ravens in Week 1

The Las Vegas Raiders pulled out a wild win over the Ravens in overtime on Monday Night Football in Week 1. 

Las Vegas Raiders head coach Jon Gruden probably summed up his team’s season-opener on Monday Night Football against the Baltimore Ravens best after the game when he stated simply, “I feel like I died and woke up and died again.”

That was the general sentiment watching a hysterical contest between these two AFC teams that culminated in a Zay Jones overtime touchdown to give the Raiders the 33-27 win to begin the 2021 NFL season. It was a game that saw Las Vegas fall behind 14-0, tie it up at 17 in the fourth quarter, tie it again at 24 and then drive enough in 35 seconds to force overtime with a 55-yard bomb from Daniel Carlson. And that was all before overtime.

Complete with a turnover by each team, a Raiders game-winning touchdown that was overturned on review, and a delay of game on a potential game-winning field goal that immediately preceded the final touchdown pass.

Few games will be as crazy as this one so, before we move on to Week 2, let’s take stock of the Las Vegas Raiders and highlight some studs and duds from the wild victory.

Studs for the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 1 win over Ravens

Maxx Crosby, DE – While Yannick Ngakoue and Gerald McCoy left with injuries and Clelin Ferrell was a healthy scratch, Maxx Crosby put the Raiders pass rush on his back against Baltimore. Not only did he fill up the stat sheet with two sacks and four QB hits on the night but he was in the backfield consistently getting Lamar Jackson off his spots and making things difficult.

For fans looking for the defensive front to make a leap, Crosby is one aspect that seems on his way to doing so.

Bryan Edwards, WR – People spent most of the Monday night contest waiting to see Bryan Edwards come out and, while he was nonexistent for much of the game outside of drawing a late pass interference call, he showed up big when it mattered. All four of his receptions came after six minutes left in the fourth quarter but he came up with one catch after another in the clutch to finish with 81 yards and almost scoring the winning touchdown. It was promising to see a player with a ton of hype start to show some of that.

Darren Waller, TE – Yes, Darren Waller had several drops but Derek Carr did him no favors on several occasions, including some mistimed throws and missing the tight end completely on what would’ve been a surefire deep touchdown.

But Waller is a stud because it’s abundantly clear he’s the best player on this team. He was targeted an absurd 19 times and ended the day with 10 catches for 105 yards and a touchdown. Waller is a true matchup-winner every time out and that was on display against a tough defense.

Duds for the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 1 win over Ravens

Henry Ruggs III, WR – Hats off to Henry Ruggs III for catching a 37-yard pass late in the game to help the Raiders secure a necessary touchdown on the drive but the former first-round pick is just nowhere to be found consistently in the Raiders offense. Throughout the night, he struggled to gain separation against most matchups and had a pass thrown his way that, though maybe not technically a drop, he should’ve had. Fingers should be very near the panic button with Ruggs.

Alex Leatherwood, OT – New center Andre James was also not great but we have to spotlight Alex Leatherwood for some poor play in the rookie first-round pick’s debut.

Many people called the Alabama product a reach when the Raiders took him at No. 17 but they spent a lot of time hyping him up throughout offseason workouts, camp and the preseason. But he was embattled against Baltimore as he got beat badly on several occasions and was sloppy with penalties. It was not confidence-inspiring to watch him on Monday.

Rushing Attack – With Leatherwood and the offensive line struggling (and the Raiders playing catch-up for big chunks of time), you can somewhat forgive the running backs for a poor performance. However, it’s still pretty troublesome that Marcus Mariota had 31 of the team’s 82 ushing yards on one carry.

Josh Jacobs was playing through a toe injury and still put together a couple of nice runs. But overall, he and Kenyan Drake combined for only 45 yards on 16 carries. Carr played well but he is going to need that rushing attack as support and it was hard not to see why that may be a problem in this win.