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Rest of the AFC West Takeaways: Week 6

By Prather Silverthorn

DENVER, CO - OCTOBER 01: Head coach Jack Del Rio of the Oakland Raiders watches from the sidelines as his team plays the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on October 1, 2017 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - OCTOBER 01: Head coach Jack Del Rio of the Oakland Raiders watches from the sidelines as his team plays the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on October 1, 2017 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /
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OAKLAND, CA – OCTOBER 15: Head coach Jack Del Rio of the Oakland Raiders looks on during their NFL game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on October 15, 2017 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Don Feria/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA – OCTOBER 15: Head coach Jack Del Rio of the Oakland Raiders looks on during their NFL game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on October 15, 2017 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Don Feria/Getty Images) /

Raiders’ offensive woes continue

The Oakland Raiders offense struggled once again during their loss against the Los Angeles Chargers. Oakland could only gain 274 yards of total offense. That now makes it 4 consecutive games where the Raiders failed to reach over 300 total yards. That’s bad, really bad. The only team to average less than 300 yards per game in 2016 was Jeff Fisher’s Rams. That is not a unit than anybody wants to be compared to.

Derek Carr returned this week, after missing a game due to a back injury. Carr completed 21 out of 30 passes for just 171 yards. He also threw 2 interceptions. The offense looks out of sync. The first interception came on a miscommunication between Carr and Michael Crabtree. The second came when Carr threw the ball too far in front of Marshawn Lynch, although it looked like Lynch was coming to a stop and Carr expected him to keep running. Amari Cooper finally got more involved in the offense, being targeted 6 times. However, his 5 receptions only went for 28 yards. Where is the explosive Amari Cooper that had over 1000 receiving yards in each of his first two seasons?

The running game was better. Marshawn Lynch was efficient, gaining 63 yards on 13 carries. Lynch showed flashes of his old self again shedding several tackles. Unfortunately it is difficult to put too much weight into his performance, as the Chargers defense made LeGarrette Blount look like Earl Campbell two weeks ago. The Raiders also had a costly mistake on special teams. After a 4th quarter touchdown to put the Raiders up by 2, the extra point was not converted.

The Raiders defense was decent throughout most of the game, but failed when they were called upon to get one last stop. The Raiders had a two point lead going into the Chargers’ final possession which started at their own 8 yard line. Philip Rivers found Hunter Henry for 2 separate long passes to put them in range of a long field goal attempt. The Raiders defense then proceeded to give up 23 yards over 5 consecutive carries by Melvin Gordon, making the field goal attempt much easier. This drive ruined what was otherwise a good day for Oakland’s defense.

Oakland now falls into last place in the AFC West. Offensive coordinator Todd Downing is under fire. Downing was promoted to offensive coordinator to start the season after being the quarterbacks coach for the previous 2 seasons. This came after former offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave was let go at the end of last season, despite the Raiders having the 6th best offense in terms of total yards. Raiders fans are running out of patience with Downing, as the Raiders offense is currently 30th on a yards per game basis. The Raiders offense will need to figure things out quickly, as they host the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday night football.

Quick Notes

Chargers rookie wide receiver Mike Williams played in his first NFL game after struggling through a back injury through most of the offseason. Williams caught 1 pass for 15 yards. Williams was selected seventh overall in the 2017 NFL draft. Raiders first round selection cornerback Gareon Conley continues to miss time with a shin injury. It is possible that Conley will need season ending surgery. 

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