Welcome in to the full recap of the Raiders' Week 4 matchup vs. the Baltimore Ravens where the Raiders tough out a grueling 28-27 win in Baltimore to notch a 3-1 start for the first time since forever.
What's better than two? Three! What a game, but still a lot of things to clean up. I didn't like a few sequences in that 4th quarter where the offense stalled, the Ravens come back with a quick score, DeAndre Washington fumbled to give the Ravens the lead. A lot of things to clean up. But, as the old saying goes: "a win is a win and a loss is a loss." The fact of the matter is the Raiders are 3-1. We haven't had this start in a long time Raider Nation. It feels great.
(+)
Michael Crabtree, 7 receptions, 88 yards, 3 TDs. I said it last week and I'll say it again, how lucky are to have King Crab on the Raiders? You see Niner fans, this is what happens when you surround him with a legit quarterback who is accurate and can throw. This man, is too damn clutch! Call him what you want King Crab, King "Grab," "Grabtree." From now on, he is "King Clutch" in my book. Two critical touchdown grabs to spark this Raiders offense. The offense didn't play that well, but Crabtree showed up big time and balled out. What a performance!
Derek Carr, 25-35 passes, 199 yards, 4 TDs. How rare is it for a quarterback to throw under 200 yards and still toss out 4 touchdown passes? His detractors may not be impressed with the stats today, but Carr did his job. He could've been well over 200 passing yards if it weren't for a couple of dropped balls and some O-line penalties. However, he did his job, playing efficiently and putting the ball on the money, especially to Crabtree.
Cory James, 15 tackles, 12 solo tackles. Two games in and Cory James continues to impress. He doesn't have a lot of experience at Middle Linebacker, but the guy is everywhere. The 15 tackles he had today speak for itself. Cory James was everywhere and I don't think he hasn't reached his ceiling yet. He will continue to get better from here.
Khalil Mack, 6 tackles, 4 solo tackles, 1 sack. "Return of the Mack. Return of the Mack. Return of the Mack. You know that I'll be back." A lot of people were panicking about Mack early on. But, we kept the confidence that he'll get it going eventually. You can't ask for more from our best defensive player when everybody is game planning for him. He may not show up in the sack department, but he's still creating havoc in the pocket. This game was exhibit A where Mack showed his dominance and finally, he got a sack! He was getting to Flacco and rattling him all game long. The Ravens' O-line had no answer for him. And every time they looked like they contain, out comes the flag. I'll give the refs a little credit for getting the calls on the Ravens and making sure they don't get away with a hold. Now, that J.J. Watt is done for the year, I think Mack has an opportunity to go for that Defensive Player of the Year award and this is a game that could jump start the Mack Attack.
(-)
Running game. The total yards of the running game today: 64 yards on a total of 15 carries. I'll give credit to the Ravens' run defense. They've always been tough since the days of Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, it is literally impossible to run over them at will. But, this was not a good game for the running game. Latavius Murray held under 19 yards. Jalen Richard under 15 yards. DeAndre Washington had a couple of good rungs, but he got stuffed as well and of course, you got the fumble late in the game that almost proved costly for the Raiders.
Vadal Alexander. The right tackle roulette on the Raiders' O-line is just brutal to watch. Granted, Alexander is a rookie, getting his first start and against a very good Ravens pass rush on the road. You'll get those kinds of games from a rookie and yes he was pretty bad today.
Amari Cooper, 5 receptions, 48 yards. I'll be honest, Coop has disappointed me so far this season. Aside, from his 137 yard performance against the Saints, he had left out a lot of stats on the field this season. You talk about the negated touchdown Week 2 when he came back for the catch after being out of bounds, drops in Week 3. He was pretty much held in check this game. And I've noticed this since last season, Coop is at his worst when there's safety help for the cornerback defending him. I love Coop since his junior year in Alabama. I believe he'll be a top wideout at the end of the season, but there's a lot things about his game he needs to polish up.
MVP
To be honest, I could've gone either way by naming Carr, Mack, or Crabtree as the MVP of this game. But once again, Crabtree shows us how valuable he is to the team, especially in the clutch. He went King Crab to King Clutch.
Conclusion
Back in the day, the Raiders couldn't win squat on the East Coast. Now, they're 3-0 on the road. This team is having us believe that the Raiders can compete and win anytime and anywhere. The East Coast jinx is no more! Now, they need to take this "grind it out" approach at home. Because the next two weeks are divisional home games against the Chargers and the Chiefs. They need to take it to the next step in order to prove they are for real by getting these critical divisional wins. They need to prove that they belong in contention to win the AFC West! Erase all doubt and win by any means against both the Chargers and the Chiefs! Just win baby! I'll see you guys next week for the matchup vs. the Chargers.
No comments:
Post a Comment