Klint Kubiak didn’t say Monday afternoon if the Las Vegas Raiders developed confidence in their offense Sunday afternoon beating the Miami Dolphins without tight end Brock Bowers.
This he did say.
“It should.”
The Raiders willed their way Week 1 to a 27-13 win down their top pass catcher, whom Kubiak announced atop his news conference Monday is “day-to-day” with his recovering left knee. Bowers had his meniscus clipped last week, sidelining him Sunday afternoon, but Kubiak’s announcement suggests there’s a chance he plays this Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium.
Without Bowers, Las Vegas relied on its rushing offense (with 143 yards between featured running back Ashton Jeanty and rookie backup Mike Washington Jr.) and quick-pass offense (with quarterback Kirk Cousins completing 21 of 30 passes for 160 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions) to build a 17-6 halftime lead.
But the Raiders missed his explosiveness.
“He’s working his tail off to get back out on the field,” Kubiak said. “It’s really important to him to play as soon as possible and that doesn’t surprise me about Brock.”
Here are other takeaways from Kubiak’s news conference:
Maxx Crosby’s snap count managed: Crosby doesn’t like leaving the field when the Raiders are defending, playing 94 percent of the snaps or more when healthy the last four seasons. But the star edge rusher watched 10 snaps from the sideline, six in the second quarter and two apiece in the third and fourth quarters.
Kubiak said that was “planned going into the game,” Crosby’s first since undergoing surgery in January to repair a torn left meniscus. Crosby didn’t play in the preseason, and it’s possible Kubiak is limiting his snaps to manage his workload to best keep him healthy throughout the course of a 17-game season.
“Been waiting a long time (to play again),” Crosby said postgame. “It’s been a long rehab. A long offseason. A lot of things that you had to go through.”
Darien Porter also day-to-day: A starter at cornerback with Eric Stokes, Porter checked out in the fourth quarter Sunday with a foot injury that also leaves him “day-to-day” per Kubiak. Rookie cornerback Hezekiah Masses, a standout during training camp, replaced Porter on the ensuing play.
Porter had two tackles and pass breakups and Masses broke a pass up, ending the first play serving as his replacement.
“That’s what they should do,” Kubiak said of Miami promptly targeting Masses, a fifth-round draft pick. “(Masses) was ready for his moment and played good football. (He’s) had a good training camp and there’s … a long season ahead, but he’s never lacked for confidence.”
Avoidable mistakes: Cousins was sharp with shorter passes, completing 20 of 23 throws within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage, according to NFL Next Gen Stats. On throws more than 10 yards from the line of scrimmage, Cousins was 1-of-7 passing — with a completion to Tre Tucker — and two interceptions.
Kubiak credited the Dolphins for keeping the Raiders from executing explosive plays. When asked about how to get more downfield passing, Kubiak said “Chuck it deep” through a smile and affirmed the importance of completions down the field as to spread out defenses.
“Two plays that were avoidable,” Kubiak said of the interceptions. “I know Kirk wants those plays back. We’ll learn from them. I thought Kirk opened the game playing really good football. Those two decisions hurt us.”
Fernando Mendoza watching and learning: Though the prized rookie quarterback didn’t play Sunday, serving instead as the backup to Cousins, Kubiak shared what he hopes he learned from his first regular-season NFL gameday: “I would think if he’s watching the tape right now, which he is, is that NFL pockets, they evaporate quickly and you’ve got to get the ball out. The ball is on fire.”
Contact Sam Gordon at sgordon@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BySamGordon on X.
