Just yesterday, the Raiders were looking at the possibility of being without two of their starting corners. Both Lamarcus Joyner and Trayvon Mullen were not at practice as both had injured themselves in last week’s game against the Chargers.
While the injury bug wasn’t treating the Raiders well, the playoff scenario sure was. They needed five games to go their way in order to stay in the hunt and all five of them did, making their game on Sunday in Denver consequential.
Had they been knocked out of the playoffs last week, there would be no urgency to get Joyner and Mullen back on the field. But now this game could mean something. Granted they will still need several other games to go their way, but most of them won’t have happened before the Raiders take the field, so they will want all hands on deck because they will have more than just pride to play for.
Mullen, in particular, had a scary hit in the game that had him wheeled out on a stretcher and taken to the hospital. Tests revealed he did not have a concussion and he was cleared by Friday for his neck injury. Good thing too because he has been the best cornerback on the team of late, so his participation will be important.
“He’s playing real good,” defensive coordinator Paul Guenther said of Mullen. “He’s understanding each and every game plan is a little bit different. His technique has been real good. He’s been tackling real good and I think he’s only going to get better. It’s a good pick up for us and he’s going to have a bright future here.”
The Raiders selected Mullen at 40 overall in the draft. Two picks later, the Broncos selected Missouri QB Drew Lock
This isn’t the same Broncos team they faced in the first game of the season. Joe Flacco is no longer the quarterback, it’s rookie Drew Lock and he’s been playing lights out since being named the starter four weeks ago.
“The young quarterback, Drew Lock, has really energized their offense,” said Jon Gruden. “He’s made some tight-window throws, some really ridiculously impressive throws.”
The Broncos have gone 3-1 since Lock was named the starter, throwing 6 TD’s to 3 Interceptions.
Though Mullen has just one interception this season, he has had 9 pass breakups since being named the starter in week 8.
If you want to go further, the Broncos also have rookie tight end Noah Fant who has come on over the latter half of the season, while the Raiders have rookie defensive end Maxx Crosby who leads the team with 8.5 sacks.
Neither of these two teams look the same as they did when they met in week one. Joe Flacco was the Broncos QB and Fant got off to a slow start. Mullen was Crosby barely saw the field for the Raiders. Now those rookies could be the key to whether the Raiders can hold up their end in playing for the postseason or if the Broncos can play spoiler.
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