Raiders Squander Upset vs. Patriots

Alright welcome in to the full recap of the game between the Raiders and the Patriots where the Patriots preserve a victory in their home opener, beating the Raiders 9-16 and securing victory #201 for Bill Belichick.

A lot of us, a lot of us expected this game to be a squash game for the Patriots. After the home opening flop the Raiders had against the Texans, there were no heads hanging high heading into Foxborough. With the way this game played, the Raiders surprised all of us by gritting and grinding the whole game, being competitive, but it wasn’t enough. The last drive definitely hurt. You can’t completely lash out on Gabe Jackson for that penalty because he rarely commits those kind of boneheaded holding penalties and this is actually his first rookie mistake, but still McFadden had that punched in for the TD and that holding call hurts, but there’s a lot of missed opportunities that the Raiders didn’t catch aside from the final drive.

The Positives

Derek Carr, 21 completed passes of 34 attempts, 174 passing yards, 1 INT. That drive killing interception from Vince Wilfork is not D.C.’s fault. Denarius Moore took his eye off the ball as a defender was coming at him. D.C., despite not throwing a TD this game, this game was showing why he is not your average NFL rookie. He was playing game manager for the most part of the game, calling audibles, changing up the offensive play calling, not afraid to use his arm downfield, you can’t completely fault D.C. for the Raiders being 0-3, he’s doing everything right, yet the supporting cast and Greg Olson’s play calling are doing everything wrong for him.

Sebastian Janikowski, 3 field goals. Putting Sebass in my positives here is such a rarity. He’s been the most consistent player for the Raiders since I was still learning my first words. Credit where credit is due, Marquette King definitely improved his hold on the ball and Sebass is turning back to the Sebass we know and love. Pretty much Janikowski’s field goals kept us in the game.

Defense. This is probably the only game so far where I’m satisfied with the way the defense performed. The defense showed some flashes, getting hits on Brady, Tuck, C.J. Wilson, and Antonio Smith managed to get sacks on him. The defense pretty much kept the Raiders alive for the most part of the game, allowing that 1 TD from Brady to Gronkowski. 3^rd down defense is still an issue, but the defense did its part by not allowing any big runs, any big plays, and prevented this game from being a blowout.

The Negatives

Missed red zone opportunities. Shoulda, woulda, coulda, this game would’ve been 21-16 in favor of the Raiders. The Raiders offense did a good job on controlling the clock, but they couldn’t cash in for touchdowns when they were in the red zone. If you want to take the crowd out of it early, and you want to have the opposing defense on the ropes, you gotta score touchdowns and the Raiders couldn’t take advantage of that.

Conclusion

There are no moral victories, you are what your record shows and the Raiders are 0-3. The Raiders give up a home game to go to London to take on the Dolphins. This game against the Patriots prolonged the losing streak in the East Coast. I’m not a psychic to see how the Raiders will adjust to the long jet lag heading over to London. The Dolphins, whenever they play the Raiders, they’ve always played tough. After this game, many questions will be asked is it time to fire Dennis Allen? The good news is, the Raiders made this competitive, the bad news is, Dennis Allen’s life support as head coach has been extended because they didn’t get blown out. If the Raiders fall flat next week, for sure the Raiders will leave Allen and the coaching staff off the plane heading back to the U.S. I’ll see you guys next week for the London game.