He completed 14 passes for 165 yards and four touchdowns.

The former Richmond Bandit capped his day with two rushing scores from the 1-yard line.

“He brings a lot of leadership. It?s like having another coach on this field,” said Simpson, the Blackbirds? head coach.

“That?s a position we?ve struggled at all season. He?s been a huge asset. He?s literally a field general who tells the players where to be and when to be there.”

In his debut with Baltimore (1-7), Jenkins connected with Kevin Dixon and AaronYarbough twice for touchdowns against the Raiders, spreading the field with an air attack and taking advantage of a lagging defense.

The Blackbirds are looking to carry their momentum into Saturday?s road game against the Carolina Speed (6-5), which handed Baltimore a 38-25 defeat in Baltimore?s fourth game.

But with Jenkins at the helm, Simpson believes vindication is within reach.

“I believe we can do it,” he said. “With it being only our first week with Robbie at quarterback, our timing was a little off. But they?re going to have another week of practice. [Carolina] has a defense we can exploit with our athleticism.”

Throughout inner turmoil and personnel changes, the Blackbirds sputtered to an 0-7 start while being outscored by its opposition, 429-173.

“This team perseveres,” Blackbirds kicker Ben Whitacre said. “We?ve got a good group of guys out working, practicing every night for the last three months. It feels goods to finally get that first win.”

But the losing streak?s conclusion isn?t letting Simpson and his players forget about what?s important.

“The guys that have been here for a long time understand the processes that we?ve been through to get to this point,” Simpson said. “It was a good feeling, but they understand that we?ve got a good team in Carolina to prepare for this week.”