Raiders Wire takes a deep dive into the Raiders offense second-half woes and why they struggled to even score a point.
After another loss to the Tennessee Titans, the Oakland Raiders playoffs dreams have faded, and fans are looking towards the NFL draft. The Raiders team, however, is preparing the Jacksonville Jaguars and attempting to find a way to end this three-game slide to finish the season strong.
The offense had been dead to rights until the first half last week. They put up 12 points in the previous two games with the only touchdown coming late in garbage time. They were looking to bounce back at home, and Gruden had a great game plan to start off the game.
In the first half against the Titans, the offense was able to move the football at will averaging 6.8 yards per play. Their success rate on all offensive plays was 62%, with the passing attack coming in at 69%.
The Raiders were able to create explosive plays with four in the first half according to sharp football stats. The passing game was indeed flowing, converting three of their four third-down opportunities through the air, helping them keep up with the Titans when the defense was playing awful.
The second half was a completely different story. The Raiders’ success rate total fell to 52% in the second half and did not convert one third down. The offense had two straight three and outs that led to back to back touchdowns by the Titans. The trains completely derailed when Darren Waller fumbled, and it was returned for touchdown 42-21.
What went wrong in the second half? Let’s take a deep dive into the offense woes in the second half that ruined the playoff chances for the Raiders.
Derek Carr Seeing Ghost
Derek Carr’s numbers under pressure have always been a concern, but this season has been a revelation. Carr is third in the NFL in passer rating under pressure at 95.1, according to PFF.com, and has thrown five touchdowns and zero interceptions on the year. Against the Titans, the old Carr crept back up with a lousy performance under pressure.
Carr was an abysmal 2 for 8 for 15 yards and a YPA of 1.5. Brandon Parker was a factor in this performance losing early to Jurrell Casey, blowing potential big plays. This came into effect in the third quarter causing Carr to get jittery in the pocket.
The first play where you saw this was the opening drive of the second half. The Raiders had a huge third and two at the Titans 39 with the Raiders in position to take the lead. The Raiders are in 11 personnel with a bunch set to Carr’s left. Waller will be running a delayed slant and is the primary target on this play, which is a staple for Gruden on third down against man coverage.
The Titans show man pre-snap, and Carr thinks he is about to throw an easy first-down pass. After the snap, everything changes, and the Titans are in cover 2, and the Corner is right there in the lane for the slant.
Carr has a clean pocket and has time to go through his reads and find the opening in the zone. Instead, he panics and believes he can run for the first down but ends, allowing an easy sack for Jeffery Simmons. This was a massive play for the offense that set them back that could have helped them keep up with the Titans.
It didn’t stop there. In the fourth quarter, the Raiders were already down by 21 and driving to get a quick score to get back into the football game. The Raiders were running all hitches out of 11 personnel and ran this play earlier in the game.
On the previous time they ran this play, Carr stepped up and hit Waller for a first down. This time he feels the corner blitz and starts to react to it. However, the pocket was clean, and he could have been poised, but instead, he panics and throws a lousy check down to Deandre Washington, allowing him to be pummeled.
Carr blew opportunities in the second half for the Raiders to stay in the matchup. He must play better for the Raiders to end this season on a good note.
Jon Gruden Not Adjusting
One of the issues that come up when people discuss Gruden is his lack of halftime adjustments. After one half, you get an idea of how a team is playing your offense, and corrections should be made at halftime. Gruden is still displaying this is his Achilles heel, and Raider nation saw it again last Sunday.
The Titans played Cover 1 early in the game, and the Raiders were able to move the ball and convert third downs. Late in the second, the Titans were adjusting to displaying man and switching to zone post-snap. Gruden kept calling the same concepts leaving his quarterback in no man’s land, forcing check downs.
One example is the play that made this game out of reach, which is the Waller fumble. The Raiders are in 11 personnel and will be running a Corner route mixed with a delayed flat to the tight end after a chip block.
Zay Jones on the corner route runs right into the cover 2 zones, and the late chip allows the corner to fall back and cover the route. Since it is a half-field read, Carr is forced to check down to Waller. This, of course, led to a fumble that made the lead insurmountable.
Gruden can’t be a stubborn play-caller. He has to find ways to adjust and attack the defense when they change as well. Even if the Raiders replace the quarterback going into 2020, it won’t matter if Gruden still can’t adjust on the fly and find ways to win late in games.
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