Storyline: The Raiders had moments against the Vikings last Saturday, but the team didn’t look as sharp as it did against the Rams. On the plus side was the play of the D-Line.
Courtesy: lalate.news.com
Last week the Oakland Raiders were clean, efficient, and controlled most aspects of the game against the St. Louis Rams. But against the Minnesota Vikings last Saturday in Minneapolis the Raiders were just like the weather…sloppy.
The Raiders had only two penalties in Game 1, but they were flagged a much more Raider-like 13 times in the Vikings’ game. The overall execution just wasn’t there.
Having said that, there’s no panic from this resident of The Raider Nation. Based on past history it’s best never to get too high or too low in August about your football team. Once the real games start, all NFL fans remember the same thing–preseason games don’t mean jack shit! But NFL fanatics are so anxious for football each summer that they forget that lesson, every year, until the season begins.
That’s not to say preseason and training camp don’t mean anything to the players. It most definitely does for guys trying to make the roster or secure a starting role. But, as a fan, you can’t watch a preseason game the same way as a regular season game. Results mean nothing. And the small sample size of plays rarely carries over into the regular season.
Yet, let’s face it: we’re fanatics of the NFL, especially for “the laundry” we root for. The analysis and nitpicking of players won’t stop. It’s just too much damn fun! Yet, what we believe in August will probably be shattered by the time September ends.
So in no way am I panicking about the somewhat subpar effort that the Raiders displayed last Saturday. This was Minnesota’s third preseason game–the Raiders second–and it was played in their house with windy/rainy weather. The good news: the Silver & Black starters took a lead on the road and played the Vikings first team to a draw. Now it’s on to Arizona.
Game Observations
Courtesy: thefirstpick.com
If I’m panicking about anything from Saturday night it’s the play of cornerback D.J. Hayden. Vikings QB Teddy Bridgewater relentlessly picked on Hayden like he was a pair of camp legs destined to be cut. Too bad Hayden is the #12 pick from the 2013 draft. Maybe it was just a bad day at the office for D.J., but he has been getting toasted all through training camp. This D.J. needs to switch up his game, big time.
Quarterback Derek Carr was OK. He hit rookie Amari Cooper with a beautiful 40-yard rainbow on the TD drive. But I thought his timing was a bit off all night. Carr had inaccurate throws to Marcel Reece and Cooper on the first drive, which was a three and out series. Then he slightly overthrew WR Seth Roberts on what would have been a huge play in Quarter Two. Sure, it hit Robert’s hands and probably should have been caught, but all Saturday night Carr didn’t put the ball quite where it needed to be.
After two games I’m already tired of the Trent Richardson experiment. He had 5 carries for a whopping 5 yards. Can one of you math majors calculate that average per rush for me? The Raiders should just go with Murray-Dyer-Jones-Reece-Olawale as the backs and be done with the “Trent test.”
How the defensive line shapes up going into the regular season should be very interesting. Second Round pick Mario Edwards Jr. was very noticeable against the Vikings. Edwards collapsed the pocket consistently and also had half-a- sack and helped force a fumble.
Benson Mayowa (courtesy raiders.com)
Benson Mayowa and Shelby Harris continued to impress and should be locks. Those two, plus Edwards and the locked-in four starters–Tuck, Ellis, Williams, and Mack–make for seven on the D-line. That leaves C.J. Wilson, Stacey McGee, Ricky Lumpkin, Denico Autry, Leon Orr, and Max Valles fighting for (at the most) two spots. Those will be tough cuts…not a normal Raider problem over the past decade.
I hope the coaching staff ultimately decides to use T.J. Carrie on punt returns. Yes, he’s the team’s starting cornerback, but there’s nobody else reliable on the roster. Trindon Holiday would be OK, but he can’t contribute anywhere else. Stars like Deion Sanders and Tim Brown returned punts all the time in their careers. I’m sure Carrie can handle the double load. Plus, Taiwan Jones can deal with kickoff returns, which aren’t quite as important these days, given the large number of touchbacks.
Can the NFL or the referees tell me just what Brandian Ross was supposed to do when Chase Ford caught his TD in the Second Quarter? Ross hit Ford in the chest trying to dislodge the football in the End Zone so it wouldn’t be a TD. There was no blatant headshot, but it was still a 15-yard penalty! Again, what was Ross supposed to do? I don’t understand or like this “new” NFL sometimes.
Player of the Game
I’m going with Mario Edwards Jr. in this game. Edwards stepped up after being invisible in the first preseason game. He was very disruptive against the Vikings, forcing a turnover and being active all night. It’s great to see progress being made from game-to-game.
