One of the costliest plays by the Rams in Saturday night’s loss was Stetson Bennett’s pick-six in the second quarter, which put the Raiders up 17-10. It looked like an ugly interception by the rookie quarterback because there was no receiver in the area, but it came down to something simple: communication.
After the 34-17 loss, Bennett was asked about the pick-six and he took full blame for it. He said he thought Tyler Johnson was going to run a different route, but the receiver ran the correct one – the one that was called.
Bennett threw it directly to the defensive back, Isaiah Pola-Mao, who returned it 50 yards for a touchdown.
“That was completely my fault,” he said. “I thought that he was going to run a different route than he did and anticipated it and he ran the one that was called and I threw the one that wasn’t and I paid for it.”
😤 @isaiah_pola_mao took it back 50 yards for the TD!#LVvsLAR 📺 @Fox5Vegas and NFL+ pic.twitter.com/CgjeMWTHlH
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) August 20, 2023
That gave the Raiders a seven-point lead, which they never relinquished, going on to win by 17 points. It was the Rams’ second straight loss by a score of 34-17, struggling to slow down their opponent once again.
Bennett finished the game with 142 yards on 15-for-24 passing, throwing one interception and rushing for a touchdown on a read-option from 4 yards out. It wasn’t as clean as last week’s showing but there’s plenty for him to learn from now.
