The Oakland Raiders defense has gotten off to a historically bad start, but at the same time, their offense is among the best in the league. After two games, the offense is ranked third in points per game, second in rushing yards per game, sixth in passing yards per game, and first overall in total yards. The offense is clicking, but can still be better, and the defense can only improve from here. Right?
The Raiders travel to Nashville to play the Tennessee Titans this Sunday. The Raiders are coming off the crushing home debut loss to the Atlanta Falcons, one week after coming out with a last minute victory over the New Orleans Saints. The Titans have scored 16 points in both of their games this year, splitting the two games with a loss to the Minnesota Vikings and a win over the Detroit Lions. The Titans have plenty of offensive talent, and the Raiders will need to shake off the loss to the Falcons if they want to come out with the road win this weekend.
Oakland Raiders Week Three Keys to Victory
Last year, the Oakland Raiders visited Tennessee and came out with the close victory, 24-21. Quarterback Derek Carr threw a 12 yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Seth Roberts with less than two minutes to go. Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota attempted to make a game winning drive but Raiders safety Nate Allen foiled that with an interception to clinch the victory. Both teams drafted well and made some off-season moves to strengthen their teams, so this game should be expected to be close.
Protect the Middle
This is probably the biggest problem with the Oakland Raiders, and the most important key to win this game. Titans tight end Delanie Walker is one of the best in the game. Last year was the most productive of his career, with him pulling in 94 catches, over 1,000 yards and six touchdowns. In the first week of the season, Mariota did not do a good job of looking for him in the passing game. The Titans made it clear that would not happen again, and Walker ended up with six catches, 83 yards and a touchdown in the win over the Lions. The Raiders have had an extremely hard time defending the middle of the field.
Somehow, the Raiders linebackers Bruce Irvin, Malcolm Smith, and Ben Heeney continue to find themselves in one on one match-ups with slot receivers and tight ends. The results tell the story themselves. Saints wide receiver Willie Snead tore through the middle of the field over and over again with nine catches, 172 yards and a touchdown in Week 1, and Falcons tight ends Jacob Tamme and Austin Hooper combined for eight catches, 159 yards and a touchdown. Another thing the Raiders have to be wary of is Marcus Mariota’s speed and running ability. They cannot allow him to escape the pocket and have open space to run the ball. The defense has not made any adjustments to protect the middle of the field in the last two weeks. If that doesn’t change, this game is going to be another shootout.
The Carr Insurance Must Stay Strong
Signing offensive lineman Kelechi Osemele to that big contract looks like a genius move right now. General Manager Reggie McKenzie was criticized slightly for signing an offensive guard to a $58.5 million contract. Osemele isn’t any regular guard though, and the way he has played so far is a great start to earning that contract. He has displayed nastiness in the running game and has protected Derek Carr very well in the passing game at the left guard and left tackle position. Injuries have forced that offensive line to make adjustments, substitutions, and forced the team to shuffle the line a bit, but the line has held strong and played extremely well. Derek Carr has not been sacked at all this year. In fact, it seems like he has barely been touched at all by pass rushers.
Pro Football Focus ranks Osemele as the fifth best guard, center Rodney Hudson as the sixth best in his position, and left tackle Donald Penn holds the third best grade among tackles after two games. The injuries to tackles Menelik Watson, Matt McCants, and Austin Howard don’t seem to have hurt the Raiders at all in these last two games. The Raiders will be facing the best pass rush they’ve seen all year, a team that sacked Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford four times last week. Don’t be surprised if Carr goes down for a sack for the first time this weekend, but if the line can continue to keep him mostly untouched, then the offense will continue to thrive.
Get a Sack After the First Series
When the Raiders visited the Saints, Bruce Irvin sacked Drew Brees and forced him to fumble the ball in the first offensive possession for the Saints. The Raiders pass rush barely touched him for the rest of the game. Last weekend, again, in the first offensive possession for the Atlanta Falcons, Matt Ryan was pulled down for a sack. The Raiders didn’t even get in the same area code as him for the rest of the game. After signing Irvin during the offseason, many were looking forward to the fearsome pass rushing duo of Khalil Mack and Irvin. But Mack has been almost a non-factor in the pass rushing attack, and except for that one sack, Irvin has been missing in action as well. Other than Irvin and Stacy McGee, the only two to register a sack in the first two games of the season, none of the Raiders linebackers or defensive linemen have a PFF pass rushing grade higher than 52.1. What does that grade translate to? A big, fat “F”.
The Raiders have to get pressure on Marcus Mariota. The Titans offensive line has given up five sacks this season to the Lions and Vikings. Mariota makes mistakes when under pressure, the biggest one this year being when he threw an interception right into the hands of Vikings linebacker Eric Kendricks that returned for a touchdown. The Raiders are missing two of their top pass rushers in Mario Edwards and Aldon Smith, but that is no excuse for the absence of the pass rush. In the NFL, there are three keys to winning a lot of games: having a franchise quarterback, protecting your quarterback, and getting to the opposing team’s quarterback. Terrorize Mariota, contain him, bring him down, and get in his face. Force him to make mistakes, and make some plays on the defensive side of the ball. That is what the Oakland Raiders desperately need to win this game without needing a fourth quarter comeback drive from Derek Carr…again.
