OAK 14 PIT 21
Welcome in to the halftime post of the Raiders' critical matchup vs. the Pittsburgh Steelers in Pittsburgh where the Steelers lead the Raiders by a single TD 14-21 at the half.
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Michael Crabtree, 2 receptions, 41 yards, TD. This is why Crabtree needs an extension. After putting up 100+ yards against the Jets, he's followed up that performance in the first half against the Steelers by hauling in a TD by Carr on the Raiders' first drive. He could've had more, but Derek Carr lead him way too far out of bounds on two of those incomplete passes. Amari Cooper and the rest of the receiving corps struggled with drops and that's why Crabtree is leading the team in receiving.
Latavius Murray, 9 carries, 72 yards. While the passing game was up and down in the first half, I thought the running game was the only consistent going for this Raiders' offense. Going back to the first drive, Murray exploded with a 44 yard run and that was the difference maker as to why the running game was consistent for the offense in the first half.
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Secondary. Antonio Brown, 10 receptions for 180 yards in the first half. Enough said.
Bottom Line
Despite Antonio Brown's career day and bringing the Raiders' secondary back down to earth, lucky enough the Raiders are down by a one touchdown score. Even though the Steelers did it in an unconventional way, the Raiders are hanging around. The offensive play calling has to be better and this Raider offense is too good to have shackles on, but that's due to a lot of dropped passes; those have to get cleaned up in the second half. And the defense, the secondary only has one job, stopping Antonio Brown. This man-to-man coverage isn't working against him. Put safety help on him or something because he is just toasting Amerson and Hayden so far.
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