Patriots Secondary Decimated as Christian Gonzalez and Carlton Davis Ruled Out Against Raiders

The New England Patriots are about to test the structural integrity of their defensive depth chart. According to Ian Rapoport, the team has officially ruled out starting cornerbacks Christian Gonzalez and Carlton Davis for Sunday's game against the Las Vegas Raiders.

Losing one starting corner is a headache. Losing both of your top cover guys at the exact same time is the kind of defensive emergency that usually ends with a practice squad guy getting cooked on national television.

"Ian Rapoport reported the official injury designations for the Patriots."

New England is also going to be without wide receiver Mack Hollins and fullback Reggie Gilliam. But let's be honest, the secondary is where the real panic button is getting mashed.

The Patriots are coming off a highly satisfying 29-26 win over the Buffalo Bills last week. Trying to stack consecutive wins is going to be a massive chore when you have to duct-tape the back end of your defense together against a desperate opponent.

Las Vegas rolls into Foxborough fresh off a tight 30-27 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. The Raiders are going to look at this injury report like a steak dinner.

From a betting perspective, this completely changes the math on the Raiders' passing attack. When a defense is missing its top two perimeter stoppers, opposing wide receiver props suddenly become the most popular topic in the group chat.

We will find out Sunday if the New England pass rush can get home fast enough to hide the glaring holes in their secondary. If the defensive line cannot force the issue, it is going to be a very long afternoon for whoever is left playing defensive back.