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3 Stats To Know for Patriots' Week 3 Game vs. Raiders

Here are the key stats you need to know for Sunday's game against Las Vegas.

The New England Patriots will face the Las Vegas Raiders at 1 o'clock Sunday in the comfort of Gilette Stadium. 

Coming off of a loss against the Seahawks, the Patriots are looking to bounce back and improve to a 2-1 record before heading to Arrowhead Stadium. 

However, the Raiders may be a more difficult opponent than they were projected to be at the beginning of the season. They improved to 2-0 Monday night after stunning the New Orleans Saints 34-24. 

To secure another tally in the win column, it will take a group effort from the Patriots. Here are the three key stats you need to know in preparation for Sunday, via Next Gen stats. 

397 Yards

Despite the loss Sunday night in the Super Bowl XLIX re-match, Cam Newton threw for 397 yards, an impressive number. His throwing has improved dramatically since starting in New England, and this past game shows that. He currently sits 8th in the NFL in passing yards with 552 yards so far this season. 

Newton also broke a record on Sunday, recording his 8th career game with multi-rushing touchdowns. His goal line rushing touchdowns in the second and fourth quarters slated him as the record holder for the league. In doing so, he passed Otto Graham, Jack Kemp, Steve McNair, and Steve Young on the list. 

179 Yards

It is officially time to say that the squirrel is back. Julian Edelman caught eight of 11 targets for 179 yards, a career-high, against the Seahawks, which is an average of 22.38 yards per catch. 

There was some doubt as to what Edelman's production would look like this season without Tom Brady and based off of his lower numbers last year. But if the veteran can keep up the pace, he will provide some much needed offense through the air for the Patriots. When asked why he kept throwing to Edelman in Week 2, Newton responded, "he's Jules." And that's all that needs to be said about that. 

4 Touchdowns

In addition to two successful field goals, the Raiders put up four touchdowns against an elite team in the Saints. Derek Carr was 28-for-38 for 282 yards and three passing touchdowns. The fourth came on a toss to Jalen Richard, who made up for a fumble earlier in the fourth quarter by putting six points on the board for the Raiders, making the game 31-17 with 7:43 left on the clock.

Last season, the Raiders finished tied for second with the Denver Broncos in the AFC West with a losing record of 7-9. They start this season 2-0, and have proved that they can produce some offense. The Patriots defense, which just isn't what it was last season, will need to find ways to slow down Josh Jacobs and Las Vegas' elite run game, and eliminate passing touchdown opportunities for Carr. 

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