Crosby, Raiders Defense Careful Not to Point Fingers

After playing one of their best games in years, the Las Vegas Raiders' defense was careful not to point fingers at the offense's inability to score any points on Sunday.

The Las Vegas Raiders' defense didn't allow a point for 58 minutes of a 60-minute football game. Usually, that would be enough to win in the National Football League. 

The Raiders, however, are in a situation that is anything but usual. 

Sunday, the Silver and Black found themselves tied in a scoreless game against the Minnesota Vikings with two minutes remaining. Las Vegas' offense had played just as badly as the Raiders' defense played well. 

In addition to everything the Raiders have experienced this season, Sunday's frustrating 3-0 defeat is the type of loss that could negatively impact any team—especially coming off of a bye week. 

Veteran defensive lineman Maxx Crosby says the guys in the locker room are too in tune with each other to let that happen.

"There's none of that," Crosby said. "We've just got to find ways to get better and find ways to get more points on the board on offense. And on defense, find ways to get even more stops. So, yeah, it sucks. Every time you lose, it sucks, but especially in December because we know how much these games matter. So, it's super disappointing.

"We're all super close," Crosby said. "We have a tight-knit locker room. That's something that's been special this year, regardless about what's been going on. So, yeah, there's no finger-pointing."

The Raiders' defense finished the game with five sacks and allowed only 99 yards passing. They kept the Vikings scoreless for nearly the entire game, while their offense scored zero points. 

It's not hard to see how frustration could build from players on the defensive side of the ball. Crosby says that, frustrating or not, the result shouldn't determine a player's effort moving forward. 

"Yeah, personally, I tell the guys all the time: 'Regardless of the outcome, or regardless of what's going on, you train and do all these things just to be able to have a chance to get on the field 17 guaranteed times.'" Crosby said.

"So, if you're able to go out on the field and you're not playing to your fullest because of losing or because the season's not going exactly our way, then that's a shame on you."

The Raiders are full of veteran leadership throughout the roster. Their ability to lead a team will be necessary over the next few weeks. 

With four games left in the regular season and a short turnaround before playing the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday night, the Raiders don't have much time to dwell on Sunday's missed opportunity. 

The Silver and Black will turn around quickly and host their AFC West rivals, the Los Angeles Chargers, on Thursday, December 14, at 8:15 p.m. EST/5:15 p.m. PST.

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