The Oakland Raiders defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30-24 in overtime. While the offense did have well over 600 yards, and the defense was decent, the biggest number of the game was penalties. The Raiders were penalized over and over, and not only did it hurt the Raiders, but it kept Tampa Bay in the game. Here are the Oakland Raiders week eight takeaways.
Oakland Raiders Week Eight Takeaways
Penalties
As the broadcasting team reminded us over and over, Jack Del Rio‘s Jacksonville Jaguars teams were the second least penalized teams in football. They must’ve reminded us of that 15 times. Well, Jack Del Rio’s Oakland Raiders aren’t like that at all. The Raiders were penalized so often, for so many yards, for the dumbest reasons, that you had to wonder if they had a head coach at all. The Raiders set a new NFL record with 23 penalties, for a total of 200 yards.
The Raiders were obviously the better team on Sunday. They were so good, they moved the ball for both teams. On the drive where the Buccaneers took a seven point lead, the Raiders had 44 penalty yards, and Tampa Bay only had 33. That’s right, the Raiders gave up more penalty yards than Tampa Bay had on the field.
The offense wasn’t innocent either. This team couldn’t get out of their own way, and they kept a mediocre Buccaneer team alive much longer than they should have. By the time Derek Carr found Mr. Clutch, Seth Roberts for the go-ahead touchdown, fans were more relieved than elated.
Mack’s Momentum
Khalil Mack had a fantastic game against Tampa Bay. While he only registered two sacks, he was a big part of why Tampa Bay’s offense was mostly ineffective. They had 270 yards, but when you consider that Oakland had 626, that’s pretty impressive. Mack had seven tackles, two sacks, four quarterback hits, and forced a fumble. He’s had a sack in three straight games, and with the impending returns of Aldon Smith and Mario Edwards, this pass rush could get scary.
Coooooooop
How about Amari Cooper? 12 catches for 173 yards and a touchdown. The young wide receiver did drop a crucial pass at the end of the game, but he was obviously Derek Carr’s favorite target today. Last week, against the Jacksonville Jaguars, the sophomore pass-catcher was shut down. He was barely targeted, and Michael Crabtree had to carry the offense.
Not the case this week. Cooper ran circles around the young Vernon Hargreaves, and it seemed like Cooper was all over the place. The Oakland Raiders host the Denver Broncos next week, and if they’re going to be competitive, Cooper will have to continue this kind of performance.
Derek Carr
What is there to be said about the young Derek Carr? While his offense kept taking one step forwards and three steps back, he was lighting up Tampa Bay’s secondary. Carr threw for 513 yards and four touchdowns. His passes were on point all day, and even when offensive linemen and receivers were getting flagged, he was keeping the team alive. Make no mistake, the Raiders would have lost this game if it wasn’t for Derek Carr.
