The Las Vegas Raiders pulled off an upset win over the Baltimore Ravens in Week 2, but it didn’t look like that would always be the case. Down 6-3 in the second quarter, quarterback Gardner Minshew threw an ugly interception as the offense continued to struggle.
Instead of rushing onto the field, the CBS broadcast caught defensive end Maxx Crosby grabbing Minshew and giving him a pep talk.
The clip was heavily shared on social media before and after the game, as many pointed to that being the turning point of the game. It wasn’t clear what Crosby said to Minshew at the time but the Raiders offense didn’t punt the rest of the game and the team won 26-23.
Now that the dust has settled, Minshew revealed what exactly Crosby told him during the pep talk.
“He grabbed me and just said, ‘Hey, we got your back, dude. We need that Washington State Gardner. We need that.’ And I was like, ‘Man, you’re right, dude. Let me see if I can go whip that up real quick,’” Minshew said during his September 18 press conference.
“Nah man, that dude’s a great leader. He does it the right way. Couldn’t be more grateful to have him on our team.”
It’s not often that defensive players are giving pep talks to the starting quarterback and it just shows how far Crosby has come along as a leader.
Gardner Minshew Addresses Panthers Matchup
The Raiders are big favorites in Week 3 over the Carolina Panthers, who have a -60 point differential through two games, which is the worst in the NFL. However, Las Vegas learned just last week that even though a team is counted out doesn’t mean they can win.
Nearly nobody picked the Raiders to beat the Ravens but they were able to pull off the upset. The team isn’t going to take their foot off the gas just because everybody expects them to beat the Panthers, according to Minshew.
“I mean, that’s every week you have to earn it,” Minshew said. “There are no free passes in this league. It doesn’t matter who you are, everybody’s good in this league. Everybody can win in this league. So, we got to have a great week of practice, and we have to show up, and we have to play our best ball no matter what.”
Gardner Minshew Talks Raiders Home Opener
The Week 3 game against the Panthers has added meaning for the Raiders as it is their home opener. This will be Minshew’s first chance to play in front of the home crowd in a regular season game. He’s excited about it.
“I’m so fired up to get home. Home opener. Everybody says we’re going to have a great crowd, man,” Minshew said. “I’m ready to hear it, ready to see it, ready to feel it. It means a lot to us, and we want to make this one of those places. We want to make our home field a true home field and something that we love coming back to. And it’s on us to make it that way.”
This is a game the Raiders can’t afford to lose. A win brings them up to 2-1 and keeps them in the hunt for the AFC West title.
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