After a hard-fought battle defensively in Week 1 against the division-rival Los Angeles Chargers and pulling off one of the biggest upsets of the season thus far against Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2, the Las Vegas Raiders were thought to cruise to victory with relative ease in their home opener against the lowly Carolina Panthers in Week 3.
Unfortunately for the Raiders, the complete opposite happened on Sunday, with Antonio Pierce’s squad falling apart bit by bit over the course of four quarters against a Panthers team led by veteran quarterback Andy Dalton, who took over as the starter for Bryce Young.
Even though the Panthers looked like the worst team in the league coming into this game against one of the best defenses in the NFL, Maxx Crosby and company couldn’t seem to figure out how to stop Carolina from scoring, resulting in a 14-point blowout, which probably should’ve been much worse than that.
According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, the Raiders will not have safety Marcus Epps for the rest of the season after suffering a torn ACL.
#Raiders safety Marcus Epps suffered a torn ACL in Sunday’s loss to Carolina, per sources.
Brutal news for Las Vegas and Epps, a team leader who had started every game since signing last year. No other damage, so he’ll be ready for 2025. He’s set to be a free agent in March. pic.twitter.com/Hf3MnBMmWr
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) September 23, 2024
The Raiders’ biggest asset during this 2024 season was thought to be the defense, with Crosby and Christian Wilkins leading the way and perhaps being good enough to keep the team afloat as a playoff contender.
After this Week 3 loss, there’s no telling what is in store for the Raiders moving forward, as it could be another rough season ahead for Las Vegas.
