Final: CHI 21 OAK 24 (3-2)
The trade that sent Khalil Mack to the Bears for a first round pick was a case that lingered in the Raider Nation court of public opinion. This game was the equivalent of a court hearing. It was simple, Bears win, it further pushes the narrative that the Raiders made a monumental mistake. If the Raiders win, Jon Gruden walks away a free man and all of his detractors can officially shut up about gift wrapping Mack to the Bears. The verdict? He ain't guilty after this game. And guess what, the 1st round pick from the Bears went off today. This was a win of epic proportions for the Raiders. Not only did they beat a great defense, but they gashed them. As I said last week, this was going to be an interesting matchup between the O-line and the Bears' D-line and how the offense was going to gameplan against Mack. They neutralized Mack the whole game, double teaming him. That's the way to slow him down. He got free in one play during the 2nd half, but Carr was able to get rid of the ball quick. That's quite the advantage Carr has, playing on the opposite side of Mack for three years.
The Raiders came out with a great gameplan to start the first half. As mentioned, this O-line was not afraid to get head-to-toe with the Bears' vaunted front seven. They were more physical, which opened up a lot of holes for Jacobs, Washington, and Richard to run through. The Raiders didn't have Tyrell Williams this game, so they switched it up going with three Tight Ends. We all know Waller is a big time target. But Derek Carrier and Foster Moreau stepped up big to get the passing game going. Josh Jacobs had an awesome game. He's no question the MVP this game with 150 total yards and 2 rushing TDs. The 2nd TD brought the Raiders home. The Bears' first round pick to get Mack wounded up being the Josh Jacobs pick. And Gruden can't ask for better exoneration by having that first round pick gash the Bears like that.
The only negative this game is the second half. Once again, that half reared its ugly head again. Derek Carr and Josh Jacobs had a miscue on the pitch to bring the Bears back. Chicago's offense scored 21 unanswered. Honestly, when the Bears' offense is better with Chase Daniel than they were with Mitch Trubisky under center, that says a lot. But, the Raiders managed to get some momentum back with a third down stop to put Chicago out of field goal range. The fake punt with A.J. Cole running up the middle was gutsy. Gruden didn't want to take any chances to have his defense out there and stop the Bears from all three downs after giving up 21 unanswered. The defense played well today. No Clelin Ferrell, but the Raiders managed to generate 4 sacks on Chase Daniel. This is a defense that's still a WIP, but the run defense is on point. Pass defense could still use a lot of work, but this unit never breaks. As I said, Gruden wasn't taking any chance since the Bears' offense was picking up steam and the defense was making plays.
After this game, we can finally put all this Mack talk in the rear view mirror. Jon Gruden and the Raiders had to put up with this trade for one whole year. After this, we can all settle down now. With the Raiders standing at 3-2, the schedule after the bye gets a lot easier. They still got a couple of road trips to go, but the fact they're standing above .500 five games into the season is one heck of an improvement from last season. Still a lot to clean up, but these Raiders are on the come up and the bye can't come at a better time after a big time win. You're free to go Chucky! We've done our due process here since the trade. "Knock on wood if you're with me."
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