Silver And Black Pride
Maxx Crosby scoffed at reports of a players-only meeting occurring early in the week.
But Crosby, Devin White, Jonah Laulu, and a slew of other Las Vegas Raiders defenders surely had a meeting at quarterback. And Tennessee Titans rookie Cam Ward was front and center of that as the Silver & Black smothered the visiting Titans 20-10.
Crosby was his usual disruptive self at defensive end pacing both team’s with two sacks. Laulu and fellow defensive tackle Leki Fotu each had a sack, but was White who set the frenetic tone for Las Vegas.
The Raiders’ linebacker timed a perfect blitz to get the strip sack and defensive end Tyree Wilson dove to recover the fumble setting up Las Vegas offense on the Titans’ two-yard line. Three plays later, Geno Smith hit tight end Michael Mayer for the four-yard touchdown.
Timing and execution on that blitz and takeaway was so exact that one had to wonder if White was clued in. Apparently, he was.
“We ran that play in practice and they blocked it, practice squad guys blocked it, so I was ready. I made a play in practice on it, obviously I didn’t hit the quarterback, but I knew that I was going for the ball if they double Maxx. And they went over there and chipped Maxx, so I knew it was going to leave me free.”
For much of the afternoon, Raiders defenders harassed Ward — the top pick in the 2025 NFL Draft — so much so, the sixth sack wasn’t credited to any defender as the Titans quarterback simply lost the ball trying to cock it back for a throw. That loose ball was recovered by defensive tackle Thomas Booker IV to put an emphatic stamp over a solid defensive performance in a must-win game.
White’s complete game also included an interception of a pop-fly type throw as Laulu hit Ward as he threw with eight seconds left in the first half. The six tackles, one strip sack, one interception first half performance was much needed from White as he looked a step slow and outright confused during Las Vegas four-game losing skid.
Offensively, the Raiders couldn’t gain any traction like it’s defensive counterparts, but the dominance was so thorough by Crosby, White and Co. And that showcases just how futile the one-win Titans (1-5 overall) have been during a rough 2025 campaign.
Let’s hit the quick slants as fast as White and Crosby got to Ward in a much-needed victory:
—Raiders head coach Pete Carroll wanted his team to run the ball more and the rush to pass ratio read: 32 to 23. Rookie Ashton Jeanty paced Las Vegas ground game with 23 carries for 75 yards (3.3 yards per carry average) and a touchdown.
—Las Vegas quarterback Geno Smith went 17 of 23 for 174 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He was also sack twice. Smith continues to build his league-leading interceptions thrown with 10 on the season.
**—Wide receiver...
