Signed by the Las Vegas Raiders in the offseason, ex-Pittsburgh Steelers ILB Robert Spillane is having one heck of a season. Deemed a defensive building block by interim head coach Antonio Pierce, Spillane had the play of the game as the Las Vegas Raiders beat the New York Jets on Sunday Night Football. He intercepted Jets’ QB Zach Wilson with under two minutes to go as New York was driving for a potential game-winning drive. The Raiders held on to win 16-12 in primetime action, moving to 2-0 under Pierce.
In his postgame interview, Spillane announced he and his wife Shelby are expecting their first child in June. A great night all around for the Spillane family.
It’s another splash play made by Spillane. For 2023, it’s his third interception to go along with his 74 tackles (entering tonight’s game) and 1.5 sacks. He finished the game tied for the team-lead with seven tackles with a sack, tackle for loss, and pass deflection.
Spillane’s interception did not ultimately end the game, the Jets got the ball back for one last possession and Hail Mary heave, but the Raiders hung on to win 16-12.
While not known as a great athlete, Spillane is better in coverage than credited for and his instincts and closing speed are legitimately strong. He had one interception in his Steelers’ career, a pick-six of Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson in 2020.
After four years in Pittsburgh, climbing the ladder from practice squad to special teamer to the team’s most trusted option at inside linebacker, Spillane signed a two-year deal with the Raiders in the offseason. Pittsburgh revamped nearly its entire inside linebacker group, inking LB Cole Holcomb and Elandon Roberts to multi-year contracts before adding Kwon Alexander early in training camp. Until Week 8, it was a strong unit providing splash plays, something Spillane, Devin Bush, and Myles Jack failed to do a season ago.
But exiting Week Ten, the team has now lost Holcomb and Alexander for the season. Holcomb injured his knee in Week Nine while Alexander reportedly suffered a torn Achilles in Sunday’s win over the Green Bay Packers. While it’s hard at be upset at the decisions GM Omar Khan was made, he greatly improved the room, it sure would be nice to have a Spillane right now. Kudos to Spillane for having a strong season as the Raiders are dealing with an otherwise difficult year.
