No one thought much of it when they did it, but the Las Vegas Raiders signing Robert Spillane this offseason may have been a steal. Against the Green Bay Packers, he had the game of his life and made the Raiders' history books.
Spillane signed a two-year, $7 million contract this offseason, per Spotrac. He was previously with the Pittsburgh Steelers, but the Raiders swiped the 27-year-old this offseason.
On Monday Night Football, he had a huge game, though. Spillane plays the linebacker position, which may have been the biggest problem on the Raiders' defense going into the 2023 offseason. They didn't have great depth and really had one good starter in Devine Deablo after losing Denzel Perryman to the Houston Texans.
His two-interception night was one for the books.
According to Raiders PR on Twitter, "LB Robert Spillane finished the first half with five tackles, one interception and one pass defensed. Spillane is only the 19th player in Raiders history (since 1994) to record 5+ tackles and an interception in the first half - the first since 2020 (Nicholas Morrow, 9/21/20). Spillane is the first Raiders defender since 2020 (Jeff Heath, 11/15/20) to record two interceptions in a single game. Spillane is the first Raiders linebacker to have two interceptions in a single game since 2001 (William Thomas, 2; 12/15/01 at SD). Spillane is also the first linebacker in 2023 to have multiple interceptions in a single game - the first since Week 14 of last season (Josey Jewell)."
Spillane not only showed that he could get to the ball and not let very many runs progress past the second level, but he also played great in coverage. The Raiders may have legitimately gotten a steal in free agency as their defense continues to have surprising moments.
The defense played well. Of course, Maxx Crosby did what Maxx Crosby does, but others stepped up, too.
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