The Raiders started hot against the Steelers but slowly fell apart on their way to a 32-13 blowout defeat on Sunday, as Pittsburgh (4-2) scored 26 straight points after an early Las Vegas touchdown.
Despite a new starting quarterback in Aidan O’Connell, this game was eerily similar to last week’s blowout loss to the Broncos. The Raiders offense fizzled, the defense had issues tackling, and the team committed multiple costly penalties.
Turnovers were another familiar theme. Two fumbles cost the Raiders dearly, and O’Connell threw an interception as Las Vegas tried desperately to claw back into the game.
Here are the winners and losers for the week after the Raiders dropped to a disappointing 2-4 on the season.
Winner: TE Brock Bowers
Once again, tight end Brock Bowers was a bright spot for the Raiders. He was a big part of Las Vegas’ hot start and ended up with nine catches on 10 targets for 71 yards. But fitting the theme for this game, an incredible one-handed grab for Bowers was ruined by an unsightly holding penalty on center Andre James.
The Raiders were without their top two receivers, Davante Adams and Jakobi Meyers, but Bowers still produced. It didn’t work out for the Raiders today, but Bowers has the skill to power a potent offense if he gets more help.
Can't stop Brock!#PITvsLV | 📺 @paramountplus pic.twitter.com/v4iZKBaeHW
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) October 13, 2024
Winner: LB Divine Deablo
Linebacker Divine Deablo returned from injury and made an impact early and often. When the game was still hanging in the balance, he had a sensational QB sack on an ill-fated trick play from the Steelers. He also had six total tackles, two tackles for loss, and a QB hit.
Welcome back Divine Deablo 🤝#PITvsLV | 📺 @paramountplus pic.twitter.com/jLJVHR9oNH
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) October 13, 2024
Loser: RB Dylan Laube
The Raiders coaching staff decided to give rookie running back Dylan Laube a carry in the second quarter, and it was a disaster. He fumbled after Steelers defensive end TJ Watt punched the ball free. The Raiders had a 7-6 lead and had a solid drive going.
PUNCHED OUT BY @_TJWatt 💪
📲 Stream on NFL+: https://t.co/COxKRnrEBK pic.twitter.com/1NdONSDjNE
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) October 13, 2024
The Raiders were intent on not turning the ball over after last week’s turnover fest, and this costly mistake was the first of three turnovers on the day, in addition to a blocked punt allowed by the special teams.
Loser: RB Ameer Abdullah
Running back Ameer Abdullah had some good moments in this game, and for a moment, it appeared he would give the Raiders the spark they needed to pull within striking distance.
Down 22-7, Abdullah fumbled on a goalline play at the start of the fourth quarter. Once again, Watt punched the ball loose and the Steelers recovered. It was one play after Abdullah nearly scored. But the Raiders rushed to the line of scrimmage rather than challenging the play, just for Abdullah to lose the ball.
Loser: DT Matthew Butler
Defensive tackle Matthew Butler hasn’t played much since he was drafted by Las Vegas a couple of seasons ago. He played today and made the wrong kind of impact for the Raiders.
His roughing penalty in the second quarter ruined an interception from Deablo. It was a huge play, as it was the drive after Laube’s fumble. The Steelers eventually converted a 4th-and-1 play at the 2-yard line, scoring a touchdown on a run by Steelers QB Justin Fields for a 12-7 lead.
Another roughing-the-passer penalty hurt the Raiders badly later in the game, as DE K’Lavon Chaisson committed the infraction on a 3rd-and-18 stop by the Raiders defense in the third quarter. The Steelers finished the drive with a touchdown for a 22-7 lead.
Loser: C Andre James
It’s bad enough that the Raiders’ inability to move the ball robs Bowers of opportunities, but James makes the loser list this week for a holding call on Bowers’ one-handed grab on the Raiders opening drive of the second half.
The play put the Raiders in a 1st-and-20 situation, which resulted in a punt that was blocked by the Steelers. Pittsburgh notched a field goal on the ensuing drive for a 15-7 advantage.
Loser: QB Aidan O’Connell
O’Connell’s options were slim at wide receiver, but he still underperformed. The running game carried the Raiders early and O’Connell struggled the rest of the way. He had 85 passing yards in the first half and ended up with 227 yards, an interception, and a garbage-time touchdown.
Besides his interception, a high throw to TE Harrison Bryant in the third quarter really hurt the Raiders’ chances. Bryant was wide open, but O’Connell threw the ball high and couldn’t covert the third-down play.
Loser: Rushing offense
After starting hot in the run game, the offense couldn’t duplicate the effort over 60 minutes. The Raiders rushing attack reverted to their old, inept ways and tallied just 57 yards on the ground. The Raiders need their rushing attack to be reliable to cover for their subpar quarterbacks, and it simply isn’t happening.
Loser: HC Antonio Pierce
Coach Pierce preached tackling and turnover-free football this week, and his squad failed miserably on both accounts. After a fast start by the defense in regards to tackling, the defense let go of the rope and allowed Steelers running back Najee Harris to run wild at times. Pittsburgh racked up a whopping 183 rushing yards on the afternoon compared to just 110 yards through the air, though Fields added 59 rushing yards of his own.
Pierce probably should have challenged a near-touchdown run by Abdullah as well. Instead, his offense rushed to the line of scrimmage, ran the ball again, and the Steelers recovered Abdullah’s fumble.
And there’s more: Pierce and his staff called for a 3rd-and-11 run play early in the game as the Raiders were ahead 7-3 and still had momentum. That’s wildly conservative and simply won’t get the job done, especially when the offense turns the ball over anyway. Another one: giving Laube a carry was a real head-scratcher. There’s simply no need to play three running backs, especially when the third player in line is a rookie.
Early on, it appeared the Steelers would be the team to make the most mistakes and lose this game. That notion switched quickly, starting with Laube’s fumble.
The season is still relatively young, and the Raiders have been blown out a few times now. Sitting at 2-4, they are in dire need of a win next week against the Rams in Los Angeles. It will take more than simply talking about playing mistake-free football, as the Raiders did all week before this underwhelming performance.
