The final score doesn’t reflect the reality that a victorious Oakland Raiders team dominated the San Diego Chargers on the road.
The Raiders haven’t won a divisional road game since 2012, and they narrowly escaped with a victory on Sunday after lighting up the Chargers in the first half.
Oakland’s offense looked cerebral and traveled up and down the field like a car on the open freeway. Quarterback Derek Carr threw the ball with pinpoint accuracy. He also found plenty of weapons to stretch the field.
Tight end Clive Walford became Carr’s third weapon in the passing attack. Running back Taiwan Jones added ...
The Oakland Raiders have been a fun punch line over the years, but no one is laughing anymore. For the first time in over a decade, this franchise is a legitimate contender for the playoffs.
While the last few minutes were a little too close for comfort, the Raiders went up 37-6 Sunday against the San Diego Chargers and held on for a 37-29 Week 7 win. This put the team at 3-3 for the year and squarely in second place in the AFC West behind the undefeated Denver Broncos.
There were certainly negatives as the Chargers scored 23 in a row to ...
The matchup against San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers puts immense pressure on the Oakland Raiders secondary. For one, Rivers leads the league in completions and passing yards, coming off a 503-yard performance against the Green Bay Packers. Secondly, he’s throwing at a record-setting pace, per Pro Football Talk’s Michael David Smith:
Finally, the Chargers have surrounded Rivers with plenty of options to target from the pocket, ranging from backup tight ends to small running backs. Oakland cannot expect to cover all of the receiving targets.
The Raiders must address the root of the issue, which involves putting Rivers on his back.
Raiders ...
No one envisioned Oakland Raiders defensive back T.J. Carrie progressing at this rate since breaking into the league as a seventh-round pick from Ohio in 2014. Kudos to general manager Reggie McKenzie for picking up a late-round gem who serves as an integral piece of the Raiders secondary.
Now, the Raiders must optimize Carrie’s talent to neutralize the most potent passing attack in the league. Oakland travels south within the state to square off against San Diego Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers on the heels of a 43-of-65, 503-yard passing performance against the Green Bay Packers' 11th-ranked pass defense.
Carrie is an essential ...
The Oakland Raiders are far better than they were a year ago, starting the 2015 season at 2-3.
But the team still has a handful of glaring weaknesses that will need to be fixed if it wants to contend for a playoff spot going forward.
With that, let's get right into it.
1. Pass rush
The Raiders pass rush hasn't exactly been elite this season despite the presence of Khalil Mack and Aldon Smith. Mack has tallied three sacks on the season while Smith has 1.5.
Oakland has 10 sacks on the season, which is tied for 21st in the league. It's not an awful ...
The Oakland Raiders had two weeks of preparation for their Week 7 matchup with the San Diego Chargers, but that doesn’t make conquering their challengers an easier task.
The Chargers' 2-4 record isn’t indicative of Philip Rivers’ play. He’s on pace to surpass records set by New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees and Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning. In a bit of a mismatch, Oakland’s suspect pass defense will match up against the Chargers' high-powered passing attack.
On the flip side, Oakland has the personnel to attack the weaknesses in the Chargers lineup.
One particular cornerback within San Diego’s secondary has surrendered five ...
The San Diego Chargers have turned the tables in the rivalry with the Oakland Raiders, winning 19 of the last 23 meetings straight up. But Oakland is 4-1 against the spread in the last five games against San Diego and 7-3 ATS over the last 10 meetings. A pair of AFL originals meet for the 112th time when the Chargers host the Raiders on Sunday afternoon.
Point spread: The Chargers opened as four-point favorites; the total was 47 early in the week, according to sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark (line updates and matchup report).
NFL pick, via Odds Shark computer: 29.5-18.3 Chargers
Why the Raiders ...
The Oakland Raiders Week 7 stock report entails some foreshadowing on the expanding roles of three rookies and disappointments with a pair of veterans.
Throughout the Raiders’ bye week, reporters questioned the coaching staff about what self-scouting meant to them as individuals. The head coach and both coordinators mentioned the concept of reflection.
The coaching staff as a whole took an inventory on their play-calling decisions. In the midst of weighing past options, personnel decisions factor into pushing this team further along in development.
Wholesale changes won’t shake up the roster, but look for minor tweaks in less prominent roles to improve the ...
The Oakland Raiders announced on Tuesday that they have re-signed safety Taylor Mays after placing defensive end Justin Tuck on injured reserve.
The merry-go-round continues for Mays, whom the Raiders cut a day before their Week 5 game against the Denver Broncos. According to CSNBayArea.com's Scott Bair, the decision to cut him was based upon his availability while dealing with an ankle injury.
It wasn't the first time the Raiders had cut him this season either.
Going into 2015, Mays began the preseason as a member of the Detroit Lions but was granted a release toward the end of August. Just ...
The Oakland Raiders brought in Ken Norton Jr.’s fresh mind to manage and develop a revamped defense, and he’s stirring the pot for positive results.
To an extent, thinking outside the box factors into good coaching. Norton has already placed his fingerprint on the Raiders defense with innovative thinking in his first six weeks as the defensive coordinator.
Initially, Oakland’s lack of sacks, leaky pass defense and poor coverage on tight ends led to the idea that Norton came into this position way in over his head. Over the past three weeks, however, he’s flipped the narrative by breaking the mold, exploring ...