Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 4 vs Broncos

For the first time this season, the Raiders were facing an opponent with a winning record. The 2-1 Broncos came to Las Vegas with the Raiders desperately seeking their first win of the season.

While the Broncos’ offense hasn’t really taken off yet with Russell Wilson at QB, the defense is still as dominant as ever. So, it’s an accomplishment that the Raiders’ offense was able to put up 28 points, even if most of that came on field goals (5).

Ballers

RB Josh Jacobs

He literally carried his team to a win. He scored both of their touchdowns on the ground while putting up a career-high 144 yards rushing and a combined 175 yards from scrimmage on 33 touches.

Time after time in this game, Jacobs saved scoring drives. He had 26 yards on the opening drive, including a nine-yard run on third and two that put them in first down at the Denver 13.

He began the first touchdown drive with a 12-yard catch and run and had 32 yards rushing and the touchdown from ten yards out. And the second TD drive he 24 yards rushing and the TD was from seven yards out, in which he made a cut, broke a tackle and drove through defenders at the goal line.

That second TD put the Raiders up by two scores at 32-23 with just over two minutes remaining. That was too much for the Broncos to overcome.

CB Amik Robertson, CB Nate Hobbs

The two of them started every snap at cornerback in the game. With starters Rock Ya-Sin and Anthony Averett both out injured, there was no choice but to put the secondary in their hands. And they stepped up.

Hobbs is normally a starter, he just lines up in the slot a lot. Robertson is not. But you may not have known it with some of the plays he made in this game.

Hobbs ended the Broncos’ first possession by coming in on the blitz to sack Russell Wilson.

The Broncos’ offense would wake up, going on a TD drive. The second of which ended in a field goal and featured a pass breakup by Hobbs and Robertson fighting through a block to stop a pass out in the flat for no gain.

Then came the big defensive play. Just after the Broncos had converted a fourth-and-one, Melvin Gordon fumbled the ball and the ball popped right into Robertson’s arms. He secured the ball and took it 68 yards for the score. Along the way, he laid a wicked stiff arm on a defender and it was Hobbs who laid the final block to usher Robertson to the end zone.

With the Raiders holding onto a 19-16 lead in the third quarter, Hobbs made the stop on third-and-18 by spinning out of a block to…