The defensive struggles continue for the Las Vegas Raiders and there does not appear to be a fix in sight. Raider Nation recently weighed in on why this might be, in particular, why defensive coordinator Paul Guenther just doesn’t seem to be the man for the job.
There have been bright spots for the Silver and Black in 2020, chief among them is the play of quarterback Derek Carr. However, along with those bright spots, there has been plenty of negatives to go with Carr’s play. The defense has not gelled, which is concerning when you consider how late in the season we are. The “impact” free agent signings have had minimal to no impact on the field, save for linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski.
Head coach Jon Gruden is aware of these troubling matters, he even addressed it at his presser. ‘We’re going to make some changes in the lineup and in the scheme we use and hopefully, we change the results we are getting.’ This sounds good but fans know all too well to take Gruden’s pressers with a grain of salt. We decided at the Raider Ramble to pose the question to our readers, what is Gruden seeing that is keeping him from moving on from Guenther?
Related: Raiders Fall To The Buccaneers After Tumultuous Week
Fans Have Had Enough of Raiders DC Paul Guenther
Question #RaiderNation We all see the offense is solid right now and @ the same time, we can see the defense is and has been the problem all along. So why does coach Gruden refuse to make a change at D. Coordinator? What he could possibly see on the field that we all don’t? ðŸ§
— RaiderRamble.com™ (@TheRaiderRamble) October 26, 2020
Raider Nation seems to fall into two categories based on the responses, one camp believes the struggles are due to injuries and so many new players. The other believes it is due to a case of nepotism. Gruden’s friendship is what is keeping him from parting ways with Guenther some fans feel.
Pretty sure this year it will be due to half the starters being new with no offseason to work things out – the loss of Abram this week was huge especially with Arnett being out – several of the plays TB pulled off wouldn’t have happened with Abram in – specifically the 3-13
— Jared Perry (@Jared_S_Perry) October 26, 2020
Derek said in the post conference that this defense plays so much better in practice and he sees a way better defense. I think time to jell maybe? Also we have absolutely no pass rush and that’s the issue
— RAIDER TOREY (@t_coll2) October 26, 2020
Because friendship is more important than the #RaiderNation @Raiders #Raiders
— Imperfect Mike (@ImperfectMike) October 26, 2020
We all know that input from fans does not factor into what the Raiders organization ultimately does. You can not help but sympathize with the fans’ frustrations, as the defense has talent. Is it an elite unit? Heavens no, it’s not even close but it should not be a doormat either. It will be interesting what happens with this situation given Gruden’s recent comments. For now, Raider Nation has no choice but to sit back and stomach all this, Ramble On.
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*Top Photo: Dylan Bouscher/Bay Area News Group