Raiders special teams’ resounding response key in Week 8 road victory

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(Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

One of the mountainous tasks on Joe DeCamillis’ when he became the chosen special teams boss for Klint Kubiak’s Las Vegas Raiders: Increased electricity in the return game.

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We saw quite the lightning bolt from DeCamillis’ Silver & Black special teams unit this past Sunday in Week 8 against the host New York Jets.

Trailing 13-7 early in the second quarter after Jets quarterback Geno Smith connected with slot receiver Isaiah Williams on an 18-yard touchdown (Raiders rookie cornerback Jermod McCoy was burnt on the play and even held to no avail), Dylan Laube made his presence known — emphatically — taking the ensuing kickoff 95 yards to the house.

The reserve running back and top-flight return man became the first Raider to return a kickoff for a touchdown since fleet-footed wide receiver Jacoby Ford last did it 2011. But that’s not all. The 27-year-old sixth-round pick from the 2024 NFL Draft became the first return man in the NFL to house a kickoff this season.

While the 14-13 advantage for Las Vegas turned out to be momentary — New York scored a touchdown on the following possession to take a 20-14 lead) — the special teams score was a much-needed defibrillator for the flatlined Raiders. And the big play came from a Raider that was perceived as a back-end-at-best or cut-day causality in Laube.

But I’ve long noted that the 5-foot-9 and 204-pound New Hampshire product is a versatile special teamer, as did DeCamillis all offseason and training camp as the Silver & Black prepped for the 2026 campaign.

“Yeah, so, I think once again, my role is to kind of bring that juice every single time and I try to make it with a tackle, with a return, with a block,” Laube said when asked about his special teams prowess despite being a running back by trade. “So I try to do everything I can to make something happen because any big play on special teams just kind of fires up the crowd, the offense, the defense too. So it’s a special kind of play.”

Laube turning on the afterburners above is without question an electrifying play. The kick return unit as a whole came together, particularly reserve safety Isaiah Pola-Mao (No. 20) and reserve tight end Ian Thomas (80). Take a look at the lane Laube took advantage off down the sideline. That was opened up with a combo seal block by Pola-Mao and Thomas to spring the Raiders’ return man.

It showcases that it does require a team effort to attain victory and as quarterback Kirk Cousins noted during the postgame press conference, that’s something Las Vegas needs more of to stack wins.

“It’s complementary football. Especially when you go on the road, to be able to have that seven-point gift given to your offense and get the wind at your back makes a big difference,” the veteran signal caller said of Laube’s touchdown. “It’s what winning football teams do. There are so many different ways to win in this league. I was really happy for Dylan, like you mentioned, coming back to where he grew up. He had so many people here as well, like Mike, and that had to be a special moment for his family, too.”

The Jets ended up kicking to Laube three times last Sunday and the halfback produced a total of 144 yards for an impressive 48 yards per return average. In terms of league-wide stature, the 208th pick of the 2024 draft boasts the top 34.1 yards per return average in the NFL (15 returns for 579 yards, long of 95).

Buffalo Bills running back Ray Davis is second with a 31.0 average (10 returns for 310 yards, long of 70) followed by San Francisco 49ers tailback Jordan James 30.0 average (10 returns for 300 yards, long of 39).

For reference, Tennessee Titans wider receiver Chimere Dike leads the league in kick returns with 32 for 829 (25.9 average, with a long of 40).

Laube also nearly blocked a Jets field goal attempt and had an impact tackle during a kick return by New York where he strongly dropped Williams after the Raiders took a 35-30 lead. It was a strong special teams performance overall.

“He’s back home, you know, a lot of family here, so it was cool for him to have that moment. Dylan is a stud player for us,” Kubiak said after the Jets game. “He continues to make plays, and as you continue to make plays the expectations continue to rise and he’s earned that.”

Another special teamer that had a resounding response in the much-needed road victory: Place kicker Matt Gay.

Holding a precarious 35-33 lead with 31 seconds left to play, the CBS broadcast openly talked about punting the ball deep to pin the Jets deep. The cameras caught Kubiak watching the clock tick down before calling timeout and having a word with DeCamillis on the sideline. And yes, Las Vegas did send punter AJ Cole III onto the field, but in his other role as holder for Gay’s 53-yard field goal attempt. And the veteran drilled it down the middle with room to spare.

Kubiak was asked the why of this decision when analytics favored punting the ball instead of attempting the field goal.

“I just see him kick in practice. I’ve seen the clutch kicks that he’s made. We were at the line that we had confidence in on that yard line, and we’ve got to get the ball closer for him offensively. But we had confidence in that,” Kubiak noted.

This harkens back on another steep task for DeCamillis: Getting the field goal kicking game back on track.

The 32-year-old Gay was the chosen one by DeCamillis to replace longtime Raiders kicker Daniel Carlson (31 years old) and initially, that was met with skepticism (myself included). Gay was on a downward trend since a strong three-year run with the Los Angeles Rams (2020-22) and was viewed as a scrap-heap type signing by Las Vegas when the team decided not to re-sign Carlson.

That decision, however, has proved fruitful as the Gay-DeCamillis reunion is bringing back the kicker’s A-Game, which he had with the Rams because the Raiders current special teams boss was the special teams coordinator during the 2021-22 seasons in Los Angeles.

Gay is 18 of 20 on the year for a (90 percent conversion rate) with a long of 59 yards and is 19-for-19 on extra points. He leads the Raiders in scoring with 73 total points while Carlson was released by the New Orleans Saints this past Tuesday. Carlson had his bouts with inaccuracy in the late stages of his Raider career and was just 8 of 12 (66.7 percent) with the Saints in seven games. He was also 16-for-18 on extra points.

Continued strong performances from DeCamillis’ special teams group is required for Las Vegas. Especially as the team heads into a tough four-game stretch that begins with the 49ers this coming Sunday in Santa Clara. Then comes a home game against the Seattle Seahawks and back-to-back road trips to face the Denver Broncos and Cleveland Browns before a Week 13 bye week.

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