The Oakland Raiders walked away from their week 13 tilt with the Buffalo Bills with a 38-24 victory that saw them score 29 unanswered points in the second half. The raiders run game, Derek Carr and defensive lapses were the three biggest of the Oakland Raiders week 13 takeaways.
Oakland Raiders Week 13 Takeaways
Raiders Run Away with 29 Unanswered
The biggest key to the Raiders victory this week was the duo of Latavius Murray and Jalen Richard consistently generating positive yards on their runs. The two combined for 29 carries and 134 yards on the ground. Murray also added another 23 yards through the air on three receptions. Both runners had little issue making the first defender miss and getting through the second level of the defense. Prior to this year Murray showcased subpar deep speed and an inability to break tacklers or make men miss but those skills were frequently on display today. Richard also showed why he was so popular in camp running around and through defenders while averaging 5.9 yards per carry on nine carries. As good as the Raiders offensive line can be, they still need the running backs to make plays if the run game is going to be effective and today Richard and Murray made the plays they needed to.
139 yards on the ground and zero sacks. The Raiders offensive line deserves as much credit for this win as anybody. Derek Carr was kept clean all day and the line opened enough holes for the running backs to break through. Donald Penn, Kelechi Osemele, Rodney Hudson, Gabe Jackson, and Austin Howard were road pavers against the Bills and crucial to keeping the Raiders offense on the field, and getting into the end zone.
Derek Carr In The Drivers Seat for MVP
When the Raiders took over the game in the late third and fourth quarter, it was Derek Carr making clutch throws and leading them down the field. The run game was effective in large part due to Carr’s presence which required the Bills to keep two safeties back at all times. Carr was masterfully accurate on a 37 second drive to end the first half with a field goal, completed four passes that included two deep strike down the middle of the field to receivers that weren’t open.
Raiders receivers also had a bad case of the dropsies today which cut several drives short and took a sure fire touchdown off the board twice on the same drive. Had the Raiders receivers been able to keep their hands on the ball this game likely would not have been just a two score game.
However, no harm no foul, as Carr was still able to lead the team to 38 points while contributing 260 yards and two touchdowns of his own while taking care of the ball with no picks. All while adding his 10th fourth quarter touchdown on sixth fourth quarter comeback on the season, no player has been more valuable to any team than Carr has been to the Raiders.
Defense has Up and Down Day
The good; the Raiders had four sacks on the day, including a Khalil Mack strip sack that effectively ended any chance of a Buffalo comeback late in the fourth quarter. The Raiders also had an interception that lead to seven points. The bad; the Raiders allowed 24 points and 8 out of 15 third downs to be converted. The ugly; the Raiders allowed 212 rushing yards.
For the Raiders to be true contenders they’re going to have to find a way to figure out how to stop the run. Its not that the bills were able to out physical the Raiders but the Raiders were far to often out of position or filling the wrong hole, or reading a read option wrong which would turn into a huge chunk play for the Bill’s offense. This isn’t a problem of talent, its a problem of making the Players are prepared in a fit well in the defensive scheme. Unfortunately for the Raiders, Ken Norton Jr. is well below average scheme wise to be a good defensive coordinator in the NFL, so the Raiders will have to rely on Mack to make game changing plays game in and game out for the Raiders.
Mack Attack
As bad as the rest of the defense might be, Khalil Mack has been superhuman for the Raiders. The interception was caused directly by Mack hitting the ball as Tyrod Taylor threw it, causing the pass to sail up like a duck into Nate Allen’s waiting hands. Mack also effectively ended the game late in the fourth quarter with the Bills driving by bull rushing the right tackle and then disengaging to chase down a scrambling Taylor, and then close out the play by ribbing the football right out of Taylor’s hands. Mack is a dominant combination of strength, speed, agility and football IQ, and, again, late in the game he showed up when the Raiders needed him most.
