With a 38-20 victory over the Houston Texans, the Las Vegas Raiders picked up their second victory of the year. It wasn’t pretty because the first half was subpar and the Raiders didn’t start to pull away until the fourth quarter. Everyone knows that a “win is a win,” but that’s not without its caveats. The fact is, there are still plenty of red flags with regards to this team. With that being said, let’s look at three individuals who let the Silver and Black down during their victory in Week 7.
3 Biggest Duds For The Raiders In Week 7
Josh McDaniels’ offensive play calling?
Although the Raiders’ 38 points were significantly more than the league average of 21.8 points per game, McDaniels’ play calling continues to baffle me. The Raiders offense had a dreadful first half, to put it mildly. It took them until the final minutes of the second quarter to score a touchdown because they were unable to get anything going. A lot of that falls on McDaniels’ inability to get his stars going early and often.
Early in the game’s opening possession, Davante Adams had his number called, but McDaniels went away from him after that. Adams was consistently beating his coverage, so this was absurd. Josh Jacob experienced the same thing because he didn’t get much going until the third quarter of the game. The Raiders’ offense exploded in the fourth quarter once Jacobs started carrying the ball more frequently.
For the Raiders to really have a chance, Adams and Jacobs must get involved frequently and early in the game. Although McDaniels’ carefree attitude may have worked against the Texans, it won’t work against better teams.
Additionally, please stop calling those terrible trick plays. They are a waste of time and downs because they are ineffective more than half the time. Last but not least, refrain from using dump-offs to backup running backs on third downs. Use the weapons you have in the pass game. More pointless trick plays and bad third down calls are too much for fans’ eyes to handle.
Raiders Week 7: Where was the pass rush?
We were aware going into the game that Maxx Crosby would receive additional assistance to keep him from causing headaches. Because of this, Crosby had a quiet game; let’s see if anyone else stepped up to assist him. In conclusion, nobody stepped up to help Crosby out. Thanks to Chandler Jones and Clelin Ferrell, the Raiders only managed one sack in the end. However, this sack occurred as the Texans were attempting to start a drive before halftime at the end of the second half.
For the rest of the game, there were no signs of a pass rush outside of some blitzes. The Raiders let Davis Mills pick them apart because he had all the time in the world while he was in the pocket. The thing that makes it worse for the Raiders is that they have no push from their interior defensive line. All of their defensive tackles have combined for zero sacks. If they don’t get some kind of push from their interior defensive linemen, this will remain a problem. These guys don’t cut it; go sign Darius Philon or Ndamukong Suh.
No signs of a pass rush can make any average quarterback look great, and if this continues for the Raiders, then they are in trouble. It seems like Crosby can’t have an “off” game or there will be no type of pressure being applied to opposing quarterbacks.
A sophomore slump has hit Trevon Moehrig
After a promising rookie campaign, Moehrig was poised to blossom during his second NFL season. Unfortunately, it’s clear that Moehrig is having trouble following a difficult training camp and a few injuries.
He was getting burned by tight ends and receivers in the game against the Texans. He is best known for his coverage abilities, so this is not a good sign. Tashan Reed of The Athletic says that early on in the game, Moehrig was being replaced by Duron Harmon in some packages. Could the coaching staff be losing faith in Moehrig? It could also be a matter of him not being fully healthy. For the Raiders, this is bad news because it indicates that Harmon has been their best safety option. No offense intended, but Harmon is 31 years old and only has a one-year contract.
Personally speaking, I won’t entirely blame Moehrig because he isn’t always placed in favorable circumstances to succeed. Patrick Graham, the defensive coordinator, has used him in one-on-one coverage situations and in the box, neither of which are his strong suits. Graham needs to use Moehrig more frequently in deep third safety, as that is where he excels. In order for the defense to get better, Moehrig needs to play better, so hopefully the two can work this out.
*Top Photo: Official Raiders YouTube Channel