After a frustrating Week 8 loss to the New York Jets, the NY Giants will look to get back in the win column as they face the Raiders in Las Vegas. They'll have to do it without former Raiders' tight end Darren Waller, who suffered a hamstring injury last week; however, quarterback Daniel Jones is expected to return to the gridiron on Sunday after missing several weeks due to a neck injury.
Although the Raiders' are experiencing a coaching change after head coach Josh McDaniels was recently fired, and the team will bench their starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo this week, Vegas still has plenty of offensive weapons that will give Big Blue's defense problems. With that being said, let's take a look at four Raiders stars for the Giants' defense to worry about this weekend:
4. TE Michael Mayer
Michael Mayer is a rookie tight end out of Notre Dame who is already making his presence known with the Las Vegas Raiders this season. In eight games, the 6-4 tight end has 11 receptions for 148 yards and has impressed over the last few games, including a 75-yard performance on five catches two weeks ago against the New England Patriots. While Mayer is still seeking his first career touchdown, the rookie has shown small steps of improvement week by week.
We can expect Raiders' quarterback Aidan O'Connell to target the 22-year-old TE a lot this week, providing for a strong performance against a weak Giants' secondary. I wouldn't be surprised if this were the week Mayer breaks out and even earns his first trip to the end zone of his NFL career.