Raider Nation, we've been waiting for this moment for a long time. Welcome in to the preview post of the Raiders' 2017 Wild Card matchup vs. the Houston Texans at Houston. First time for everything, but I'll be helped big time considering the Raiders did play the Texans this season in a 20-27 victory down in Mexico City. I'll be placing a lot emphasis on the Texans because hey, "know the enemy."
Considering a regular season matchup between these two teams happened, there shouldn't be any surprises. But, the teams will make little changes to their game plan than last time. Definitely there'll be a big time adjustment on the Raiders' sideline since Connor Cook will be starting at quarterback.
In all honesty, the Texans are better than what most people give them credit for. Yes, they have an anemic offense having a quarterback problem with Tom Savage and Brock Osweiler. But they've had success with their running game. Lamar Miller posted an 1,000 rushing yards campaign in his first year with the team. Their defense is criminally underrated. And the fact that they've done so without J.J. Watt all season is pretty impressive. Luckily, the Raiders don't have to worry about Watt, but Jadeveon Clowney has been coming into his own late this season and he's slowly, but surely living up to the hype as the #1 overall pick in 2014. Whitney Merciless is another pass rusher that the Raiders also need to account for. Romeo Crennel, the Texans' defensive coordinator, is probably salvinating on Connor Cook starting and will obviously put together an exotic defensive game plan to confuse the rookie out of Michigan State.
During the regular season meeting with the Texans, the Raiders looked really flat. But remember, they were coming off a bye and a big Sunday Night victory over the Broncos. Also, Mexico City has a very ridiculous altitude below sea level. They couldn't run the ball early on and full credit to the Texans' run defense for stopping the run game. Vince Wilfork can still eat up space and the Texans held opponents under 100 yards rushing per game during the season. However, the Raiders did beat them in other ways. Carr was able to find Murray and Richard out of the back field and they burned the Texans' defense with the half back screen game. Of course, Olawale had that big TD to tie the game up on the wheel route. Defensively, the Raiders were being gassed and they couldn't off the field on third down. It seemed like every third down play, Osweiler found C.J. Fiedorowicz over the middle for a first down and from there, the Texans continued to gash the run D with Lamar Miller. But, bend but don't break, the defense made critical stops when needed.
Everyone says it, the playoffs are a whole different ball game in the regular season. The Raiders put themselves in this position to on the road and possibly, go all the way. For Connor Cook, a Wild Card game as his first professional start is gonna put some pressure. Ball security and game management is going to be crucial for him. He made a couple of turnovers in the Broncos game, but those will happen when a rookie steps in against one of the best defenses in the league. As I said before, the Texans' defense is underrated, but they are beatable.
Offensively, the offensive line is going to be a big time key for this matchup. Although, Penn and K.O. went down last Sunday, hopefully the initial prognosis is minor and that they'll be ready to go Saturday. If it stands, Penn, Osemele, Hudson, Jackson, and Watson have to impose their physicality against a stout defensive front and keep Cook clean all game long. Cook is going to need the run game to function so that he won't have too much pressure. That starts with the O-line to push around defensive linemen and create big running lanes. Murray, Richard, and Washington need to have the best games of their careers rushing-wise. They're very capable pass catchers out of the backfield, but if they can run through the Texans' stout D-line, it's going to make them harder to cover. The Raiders have relied on Coop, Crab, and Roberts in the passing game, but the Texans' secondary have been decent in keeping receivers in check. So Bill Musgrave, for Pete's sake, get Walford and Rivera involved as much as possible. They're going to help Cook big time. Then again, Walford and Rivera have to do their part to catch the ball since the Tight End position has been anemic all season long with their drops.
On the defensive side, it's time for Khalil Mack and Bruce Irvin to feast. Mario Edwards, Jr. already has two games in to knock off some rusts after being out for the majority of the season. Hopefully, we see Stacy McGee back in action to help bolster the defensive front. Also, Karl Joseph returns to reinforce the secondary. The pieces are in place for Mack and Irvin to wreak havoc on Osweiler. Osweiler ran over this defense and threw the ball at will. But now, he's facing a much stronger front. The key is that Ken Norton Jr. needs to call his best defensive gameplan as a coordinator. Honestly, he owes us with all the shortcomings all season long despite having better talent to work with than his first year. Place major emphasis on containing Miller, Hopkins, and especially Fiedorowicz and any other Tight End over the middle. Bring the heat on Osweiler and blitz!
This should be exciting. First playoff game in a long time. If the Raiders execute a great gameplan and follow any of the keys I mentioned on both sides of the ball, they have a very good chance of winning. It's time for them to stop moping about Carr's injury. Obviously, their heads weren't in it in the biggest game of their lives last Sunday with the AFC West up for grabs. Believe in Connor Cook and win this game by any means! I'll see you guys on Saturday.
No comments:
Post a Comment