Raiders Set to Face Major Obstacle in Week 2
The Las Vegas Raiders will play host to their long-time AFC West division rival, the Los Angeles Chargers, in Week 2. Everyone is going to have their eyes on this matchup, not only because it is a great rivalry game, but because it is going to be a primetime game that will be on Monday Night Football.
These are two teams that do not like each other. They have had many battles that were great over the years. Now they will look to battle it out once again at Allegiant Stadium.
This is going to be a big game for the Silver and Black. It is their home opener, and that stadium is going to be rocking. It is also their first game in the division, and it can set the tone for the rest of the way when they face a divisional opponent. Last season, the Raiders did not win any AFC West divisional games. That is something that they want to change. And if the Raiders have any thoughts of winning the division, these are games that you must win.
Raiders AFC West
The Raiders will get an extra day to prepare for this Monday Night Football matchup. And that is going to be huge for the Silver and Black, because yesterday they were on the East Coast and had to fly all the way back to the West Coast.
It is going to be interesting to see how the Raiders handle this week and see how head coach Pete Carroll goes about the players all week long. One thing that we do know is that the Raiders will have a good week of practice and will be well prepared for this game.
The Raiders' defense will have its hands full with Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert. He is coming off a good game in Week 1. He led his team to victory against the AFC West rival, the Kansas City Chiefs. And he is looking to go 2-0 and 2-0 in the division as well. But Raiders star defensive end Maxx Crosby will have something to say about that. Crosby always likes to play in the division games, and he is looking to get Hurbert to the great. Crosby will be key in this game for the Raiders.
Former Projected Steelers Starter Signs With Buffalo Bills: Report
Veteran punter Cameron Johnston was among the more surprising roster cuts for the Pittsburgh Steelers in late August before the 2025 regular season. But Johnston has officially found his next NFL opportunity.
NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported Tuesday the punter has signed with the Buffalo Bills.
Johnston punted in just one game for the Steelers. That was Week 1 of the 2024 campaign. Johnston suffered a season-ending injury in the matchup versus the Atlanta Falcons.
Entering 2025, most pundits expected Johnston to regain his punter role in Pittsburgh. But the Steelers elected to keep Corliss Waitman, who replaced Johnston for the team last year, instead.
Cameron Johnston Signs With Buffalo Bills: Report
The 33-year-old will bring seven years of NFL experience to Buffalo. He’s averaged 47 yards per punt and posted a 41.8 net yards per punt total in 96 NFL games.
The Bills made multiple changes on special teams Tuesday. At punter, Buffalo signed Johnston and waived fellow punter Brad Robbins.
Robbins punted four times for the Bills in Week 1. He averaged 39.5 yards per punt and 38 net yards per attempt. He pinned Buffalo’s opponent, the Baltimore Ravens, inside the 20-yard line once.
Robbins is younger than Johnston but doesn’t have as much NFL experience. Robbins appeared in 17 games for the Cincinnati Bengals during 2023. The 26-year-old averaged 44.3 yards per punt and 40.1 net yards per attempt.
He didn’t appear in an NFL regular season game for the Bengals or any other team during 2024.
Johnston began his career with the Philadelphia Eagles. His 48.1 yards per punt as a rookie in 2018 remains at least tied for his career best. Johnston matched that total in 2022 with the Houston Texans.
He punted three seasons for the Eagles and then three in Houston. Johnston signed a three-year contract to join the Steelers ahead of 2024.
In 2021, Johnston led the NFL with 88 punts and 4,108 punt yards. He set a career-best 43.7 net yards per punt with the Texans in 2023.
If he remains with the Bills, the Steelers will see Johnston when Buffalo visits Pittsburgh during Week 13 on November 30.
Steelers Moving Forward With Punter Corliss Waitman
The NFL doesn’t stop when one is injured. That means a player’s job isn’t guaranteed to be theirs when they return.
That was the case for Johnston. Waitman punted well after replacing Johnston ahead of the second game of the season last year. Waitman averaged 46.4 yards per punt and 41.4 net yards per attempt in 2024. He also pinned opponents inside the 20-yard line on 41.5% of his punts.
Most importantly, the cold, wintery weather the Steelers played in last year didn’t impact him at all. Waitman averaged 46.3 yards per punt in the final six games of 2024.
This summer, the Steelers had both Waitman and Johnston competing for the punter role. Somewhat surprisingly, Waitman won the job.
“It was a tight competition through camp, but the Steelers appear to go with Corliss Waitman as their punter,” ESPN’s Brooke Pryor wrote on X on Aug. 25. “Signed after Johnston’s season-ending knee injury, Waitman averaged 46.6 YPP in 2024.”
Waitman out-punted Johnston during the preseason, but money may have played a role in the decision as well. Cutting Johnston saved the Steelers $2.5 million against the salary cap.
In Week 1, Waitman averaged 47.5 yards per punt and 42.8 net yards per attempt on four punts. He pinned the New York Jets inside the 20-yard line once.
