Score: SD 14 OAK 14
Alright welcome into the halftime post of the Raiders' first divisional showdown of the season vs. the Chargers where both teams are locked up at 14 a piece in this critical division game.
The Positives
Derek Carr 11 of 21 passes, 187 yards, 2 TDs. Ankle injury, what ankle injury? I'm still skeptical about Greg Olson's play calling, but the offensive play calling is turning D.C. loose out there despite his ankle injury. A 77 yard bomb to Andre Holmes and then Carr put together a great, long TD drive to James Jones. Carr is playing great out there despite not being 100%.
Andre Holmes, 3 receptions, 115 receiving yards, 1 TD. He's struggling with a couple of drops, but this is the Andre Holmes that we know and love. Hidden potential, if you put him down the field, he'll grab the ball like a rebound since he was also a standout basketball player. By opening up the playbook more down field, Holmes is getting more looks and he's having the game of his life here against a solid Chargers defense.
The Negatives
Dropped passes. The Raiders dropped over 7-8 passes and most of those drops would've critical for a big gain. Carr is making the plays with the wide receivers, but the tight ends down the middle need to step up, especially Mychal Rivera. Rivera has dropped 2 critical passes down the middle for a big gainer.
Penalties. The Raiders committed 6 penalties for 40 yards and particularly in that last drive to put Sebass to kick a FG to put the Raiders up 3, there was a holding call on Watson, an offensive PI by James Jones. Those penalties hurt and the end result, Sebass missed a field goal he usually makes.
Bottom Line
The Raiders are playing inspired out there. However, I believe in fools gold and the Chargers could turn it up a notch just at a snap of a finger. No more vanilla playcalling, the coaches have to stay aggressive and with Sparano as the HC, he's making sure Olson and Tarver are calling aggressive plays.
No comments:
Post a Comment