It’s only been two weeks, but the Las Vegas Raiders are already surprising people this season with a 2-0 record, including Sunday’s big win over the Los Angeles Chargers. So, the Raiders aren’t really missing any offseason losses/subtractions, but let’s take a look at how a few old friends fared this week.
Tyree Wilson
Score: 24-17 Saints win
Stats: 0 tackles
Seeing as Las Vegas heads to New Orleans to take on the Saints next week, Wilson seems like a good player to start with. However, he isn’t making much of an impact in the Big Easy. The 2023 No. 7 overall pick had just two tackles in the season opener and didn’t even register a stat in Week 2 against the Baltimore Ravens. Wilson was active; he just wasn’t doing much. The Saints sent a fifth-round pick to get the defensive end, which the Raiders used to draft safety Dalton Johnson, who has been a healthy scratch in both games. However, Johnson at least provides some future value while Wilson is in a contract year.
Geno Smith
Score: 20-17 Jets lose in OT
Stats: 27/41 (65.9%), 247 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT
The New York Jets held a late-fourth-quarter lead but couldn’t hold on, giving up 10 points in the final frame and three more in overtime to drop to 1-1. Smith didn’t play poorly by any means, taking care of the football with no turnovers on a rainy day while throwing for nearly 250 yards. However, taking too many sacks was one of his big issues in Las Vegas, and he hit the ground four times against a Micah Parsons-less Green Bay Packers defense. Smith was sacked twice on the Jets’ failed overtime drive.
K’Lavon Chaisson
Score: 37-20 Commanders lose
Stats: 3 tackles, 1 sack
Speaking of sacks, Chaisson notched his first of the year against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. Granted, that didn’t matter much since the Cowboys controlled this game pretty much from start to finish, scoring on the opening drive and winning by three possessions. But after having just having five sacks in four seasons before heading to Las Vegas, Chaisson has gotten to the quarterback 13.5 times in two seasons and two games. That’s a testament to former defensive line coach and current Raiders defensive coordinator Rob Leonard.
