Christian Gonzalez is out. Carlton Davis is out.
The Patriots’ top two cornerbacks are scratched for Sunday’s game against the Raiders, and this is as close to a gift as the NFL schedule hands out in Week 5.
Per the Patriots’ official injury report, Gonzalez (shoulder) and Davis (neck) are both ruled out. Pats Pulpit’s beat coverage adds that depth corners Karon Prunty and Channing Canada are down too. New England is sending out a cornerback room held together with duct tape.
Here’s the report that kicked this off:
#Patriots ruled out vs the #Raiders: CB Christian Gonzalez, CB Carlton Davis, WR Mack Hollins and FB Reggie Gilliam.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 9, 2026
Kirk Cousins has 11 touchdown passes through four games. That ties the NFL lead, and it’s the best four-game start in Raiders history, ahead of Rich Gannon’s pace back in 2002. Now he gets to throw against a secondary running on fumes.
The pass rush has no excuse either. Maxx Crosby racked up 8 pressures in Week 4, tied for second-most in the league. The Raiders generate pressure on 43% of dropbacks (fourth-best in football) behind an offensive line that owns the best pass-block win rate in the NFL. Every piece is already in place.
Funny enough, Cousins and Crosby were throwing punches at each other back at training camp in August. Now the whole operation needs Crosby winning his rep off the edge and Cousins cashing it in through the air, same team, same Sunday.
If this offense can’t put points on the board against a Patriots secondary that’s down to backups of backups, on the road, as 3.5-point underdogs, there’s no matchup excuse left to hide behind.
