One of the bright spots from Las Vegas‘ 28-13 loss at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers was the performance of running back Sincere McCormick.
An undrafted free agent running back out of UTSA in 2022, injuries derailed McCormick’s hopes for the 2022 season. McCormick has been primarily a practice squad player ever since.
But, as the Raiders have navigated injuries to their top two running backs, Alexander Mattison and Zamir White, McCormick has gotten his chance in the silver and black of late.
In a starting role against the Buccaneers, McCormick delivered a breakout showing. It earned McCormick the nod from ESPN as the Raiders’ most surprising performance against the Bucs.
Running back Sincere McCormick, who has mostly been a practice squad player, is looking more like RB1 for a rebuilding Raiders offense. McCormick, taking advantage of injuries to Alexander Mattison and Zamir White, rushed for a career-best 78 yards on 15 carries. – Paul Gutierrez, ESPN.
McCormick has actually tallied career-best performances in each of the Raiders’ past three contests.
McCormick carried five times for 33 yards in the Raiders’ 29-19 loss against the Denver Broncos on Nov. 24. Then, against Kansas City on Nov. 29, McCormick rushed 12 times for 64 yards.
Finally, McCormick delivered his latest standout performance against the Bucs from Raymond James Stadium.
With White officially placed on season-ending injured reserve, the emergence of McCormick is crucial coming down the home stretch of the season as his workload continues to expand.
Mattison was listed as questionable with an ankle injury against Tampa Bay, but the fifth-year running back didn’t end up going against the Bucs. Mattison’s last appearance for the Raiders came in Week 11 at Miami.
With Mattison and White out against Tampa Bay, Ameer Abdullah operated as the Raiders’ backup running back. Abdullah saw 26 offensive snaps per Pro Football Focus, but he carried just once for one yard.
The Raiders (2-11) return to action on Monday, Dec. 16 with a home date against the Atlanta Falcons (6-7). Las Vegas then closes with games versus Jacksonville, at New Orleans and versus the Los Angeles Chargers.