Tag: AJ Cole

How the Jets beat the Bills and if Raiders have the firepower to do it too

How did the Jets beat the Bills Monday night? Do Raiders have the firepower to do it too? Let’s take a look.

Four plays into the Monday night matchup between the Jets and Bills, the Jets lost their great hope. That when Aaron Rodgers — the biggest acquisition of the 2023 offseason by any team — was lost to an injury.

At that point most of the NFL world thought the Bills would trounce the Jets. You know, the. 13-3, reigning AFC East champion Bills?

And yet, the Jets hung around, took the game to overtime, and then sealed it on a huge punt return for a touchdown.

There are two questions that arise from this.

1. How?

2. Can the Raiders do it too?

The first question is easier to answer than the second one. As to whether the Raiders can do it too, the answer is cliche, but true — anything’s possible.

What we *can* do is lay out how the Jets did it and tell you what the Raiders have to offer should they wish to replicate the Jets’ success.

1. Interior pressure

The Jets sacked Josh Allen five times. No easy task considering how elusive Allen can be. Three of those five sacks came from interior defenders including two from former Raiders DT Quinton Jefferson.

Keep in mind the Bills were without Carl Lawson for the game, so the interior DL did much of this without a strong edge rusher to help out.

Can the Raiders do it?

It’s interesting to note that a former Raiders DT had two sacks in the game, because they never should have let Jefferson walk and they haven’t done a great job of replacing him. The Raiders interior DL is one of the least threatening units on any team, let alone the Raiders.

Like the Bills, the Raiders will be without a pass rusher as Chandler Jones is still away from the team dealing with his personal issues. The Raiders do have Maxx Crosby, but he may be once again going at it with little or no help.

2. Ball hawking safety

Strong safety Jordan Whitehead may as well have been Josh Allen’s VISA card cuz he was everyone he wanted to be. Whitehead had not one. not two, but THREE interceptions in the game! Not many quarterbacks can survive that.

And, sure, Whitehead probably had some help from the aforementioned DL pressure, but you don’t pick off three passes by accident. You have to have some tremendous instincts, smarts, and hands to be that opportunistic.

Can the Raiders do it?

The man lining up at the strong safety spot for the Raiders these days in Marcus Epps. He was one of the team’s priority free agent signings this offseason after his first full season as a starter in Philadelphia.

Can Epps ball hawk like that? If he can, it would be a real first. Epps has as many career interceptions (3) as Whitehead had Monday night alone. And Epps had none of those picks in his 17 starts last season.

In last week’s season opener, Epps would have had a forced fumble, but it was wiped away by a Marcus Peters illegal contact penalty. Epps also gave up a 21-yard catch and one of the Broncos’ two touchdown catches. Fellow safety Tre’von Moehrig gave up the other one. Moehrig has just one career interception and had none last season.

So, the answer, again, is not likely.

3. Big time receiver making big time plays

Garrett Wilson is a certified stud. He made Aaron Rodgers’ replacement Zach Wilson right on a pass with one of the most unreal catches you’ll ever see. Wilson threw for him in the end zone with Pro Bowl cornerback Tre’Davious White all over him. The ball was right at White, but Garrett Wilson reached back and batted the ball away, tipping it to himself to make the TD catch.

Can the Raiders do that?

To answer this question, you need only listen to Aaron Rodgers, who put a post on social media this offseason touting how much he loves his number 17 receivers. Currently that’s Wilson. But for several years that was Davante Adams.

So, yeah, the Raiders can absolutely do that. Adams has often done that. He makes his QB look right a lot and makes their job easier with his ability to get open either via his superb route running or his long speed.

4. Explosive run game

Breece Hall had a big night, first breaking off a 23-yard run and later bursting for an 83-yard run. He finished with 127 yards on 10 attempts. Toss in the 33 yards on 13 carries by Dalvin Cook and the Jets backs put up 160 yards on the ground, while averaging seven yards per carry.

Can the Raiders do that?

Well, the Raiders *do* have the NFL’s reigning rushing title holder. Josh Jacobs easily had the most rushing yards last season. Though, you may not have known it by how he was running last week.

Not to say that was all his fault. He had a few plays where he broke a tackle at or behind the line of scrimmage and made something out of nothing. But after missing all of training camp while refusing to sign the franchise tender, he didn’t really look like he was in the form he was last season.

I would expect Jacobs will be more like the back he was last season now that he’s been hit a few times. After all, he had his great 2022 season after playing significant minutes during the preseason, so we know he does his best work when he’s seen some live game action.

5. Clutch special teams play

The Jets got the win in dramatic fashion. After forcing a punt quickly in overtime, return man Xavier Gipson took it to the house for the walk-off win.

It was a great return, but it’s important not to give *all* the credit to the man with the ball. He had ten guys blocking as well.

The drama on special teams actually started before that. The game made it to overtime on a 50-yard field goal from Tyler Bass that hit the left upright and still went through.

Can the Raiders do that?

The Raiders have arguably the best kicker in the league in Daniel Carlson. And there is no question they have the best kick squad in the league when you factor in punter AJ Cole.

It was lack of clutch special teams play from Broncos kicker Wil Lutz that helped the Raiders escape Denver with a win last week. Lutz missed an extra point and a 55-yard field goal. The Raiders won the game 17-16.

Carlson missed just one field goal inside 50 yards last season and nailed 11 field goals of 50 yards or more. And Cole has averaged at or near 50 yards per punt for the past two seasons.

As for punt and kick returns, the Raiders don’t threaten much. Ameer Abdullah returned 26 kicks last season. He averaged 20.9 yards per return with a long of 33 yards. The longest punt return was Hunter Renfrow for 17 yards.

Raiders 2023 Team Captains includes newcomers Robert Spillane, Marcus Epps

Raiders announce 9 Team Captains including Josh Jacobs, Robert Spillane, Marcus Epps

Today the Raiders named nine team captains. Four on offense, three one defense, and two on special teams.

Those captains are as follows:

Offense

QB Jimmy Garoppolo
RB Josh Jacobs
WR Davante Adams
LT Kolton Miller

Defense

DE Maxx Crosby
LB Robert Spillane
S Marcus Epps

Special teams

K Daniel Carlson
P AJ Cole

Of note among the captains is Josh Jacobs who just took the practice field for the first time this week after sitting out all of camp until he received a new one-year deal in lieu of signing the franchise tag.

Also of note is Robert Spillane and Marcus Epps who signed with the team this offseason. They were chosen over returning starters at those positions Divine Deablo and Tre’von Moehrig.

Third year starting cornerback Nate Hobbs may have also been a fine choice as a captain. But no players who were captains last season were stripped of that status this year.

Top 25 players on Raiders roster ranked: 6-10

We have reached the Top 10 in our countdown of the Top 25 players on the Raiders roster.

We’ve now moved inside the top ten in our ranking of the current players on the Raiders roster. In some ways this could be the most controversial because there is probably some consensus on who the top five players are on this team, but who rounds out the top ten is probably less decided.

Even still, this is how I see the back portion of the top ten stacking up.

See the 11-15 ranked players here.

6 Raiders make NFLPA Players’ Top 5 at their position

NFLPA puts out their list of Top 5 at each position and 6 Raiders make the cut

This year, along with the NFLPA putting out their first ever Players’ 1st Team All Pro, they did something unique. Instead of doing a first and second team the way the AP does, they asked players at each position to give their top five.

Once they tallied up the scores, they put out a top five at each position. The Raiders saw six players make the top five at their position. Those positions are Running back, Fullback, Wide receiver, Edge rusher, Kicker, and Punter.

RB 1. Josh Jacobs (All Pro)
FB 4. Jakob Johnson
WR 2. Davante Adams (All Pro)
ED 3. Maxx Crosby
K 2. Daniel Carlson
P 3. AJ Cole

It’s notable that even though Adams was named number two behind Justin Jefferson that it was Adams who was named first team All Pro. So, these top fives don’t line up like a simple first team, second team, third team type of thing.

Raiders players who may have made the list in years past, but whose 2022 seasons were upended by injuries include TE Darren Waller and LB Denzel Perryman. Should they return to health and to form, they could push to make the team next season.

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Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 18 vs Chiefs

The final single game Ballers & Busters for Raiders this season is a doozy.

After the Raiders scored 34 points on the 49ers stout defense and took them to OT in Week 17, there was some expectation going into the season finale that they might play a competitive game against the rival Chiefs.

They did not.

This one got out of hand quick, turning into a three-score game by half time. Welp, at least we can’t say they blew a big lead this time, right?

Ballers

WR Davante Adams

The first third-down conversion of the game for the Raiders offense was a pretty over-the-shoulder grab by Adams for 13 yards. It set them up in scoring range on the first drive. Had Stidham’s pass to Adams at the goal line been a little lower, Adams would have scored a touchdown. But instead, they opened with a field goal.

Adams caught a 22-yard pass and forced a pass interference late in the second quarter to put the Raiders in KC territory. But a 24-yard catch by Adams was wiped away on a penalty on the Oline, and two plays later, the Raiders turned the ball over, so they would get no score out of the promising drive.

Even with the missed opportunities, Adams still led the team with 73 yards receiving, putting him over 1500 receiving yards on the season.

Daniel Carlson

He trotted out and nailed a 54-yard field goal to end the first drive and scored all the points the Raiders had in the game. Which was six points.

AJ Cole

Kick squad was doing their thing. Cole only had two punts, but they were good ones. The first one went 63 yards and was downed at the two. The other went 59 yards with a five-yard return for a 58.5-yard net for the game.

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Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 14 vs Rams

We look at the Ballers & Busters for Raiders in their Thursday Night loss to the Rams

Coming off a full team win over the Chargers last week, the Raiders came in feeling pretty good about themselves against a banged up Rams team that had lost six straight. And the old collapsing Raiders showed up.

A 13-3 halftime lead gave way to a scoreless third quarter and a late comeback win by Baker Mayfield and the Rams. And thus both teams’ streaks came to an end on Thursday night in Los Angeles.

Ballers

DE Maxx Crosby, DE Chandler Jones

Jones answered the question as to whether his three-sack game last week was a one-off. It wasn’t. He had another big week as did Crosby. Though Crosby usually does.

Crosby ended the Rams’ first possession with a tackle for loss on an end around on third-and-one for a three-and-out.

Leading 13-3 in the second quarter, Crosby had another tackle for loss and on the next play closed off the outside, leading to another tackle for loss. Two plays later, the Rams were at the Vegas 23-yard-line where Chandler Jones punched the ball out of Cam Akers’s hands and then recovered the fumble himself.

The Raiders held the Rams scoreless in the third thanks in large part to Crosby and Jones getting pressure from both sides to force an incompletion and the the two of them teaming up for a sack.

On the two drives to win the game for the Rams, Crosby looked to be held several times, but none were called. Jones was held at least once that was called and had a QB hit on an incompletion. And the two of them again teamed up for a sack.

Can’t blame these two for the collapse. They were playing their hearts out all the way to the bitter end.

K Daniel Carlson

After scoring a touchdown on their opening drive, the rest of the way for the Raiders it was Carlson. He connected on a 52-yard field goal and two others. You just wanted to see probably a TD instead of a field goal on at least one of them. Or perhaps one more field goal, but that’s not on Carlson. He did his job.

P AJ Cole

Speaking of players you’d like to have seen less of…AJ Cole. No offense to him. He knows no one wants to see him take the field. But we did see him. And he showed he’s a weapon. He had two punts downed inside the 20, including a 64-yarder that was downed at the two-yard-line prior to the final drive by the Rams. Literally nothing more he could have done to try and keep the Rams from driving for the win than to force them to go 98 yards to do it.

WR Davante Adams

Adams made one of the most unreal catches on the opening drive. First pass of the game, with Jalen Ramsey all over him. Ramsey literally holding one of his arms down and putting his other hand over Adams’ eyes, Adams still made a ridiculous one-handed grab for 32 yards. That set up the TD on the opening drive.

Later, he caught a 35-yard pass in which he waited to the last instant to snatch the pass to Ramsey was unable to bat it away. That one should’ve set up another score, if not for Derek Carr throwing an interception in the end zone.

Adams even laid a couple nice blocks in the game. Too bad he was abandoned in the second half.

WR Mack Hollins

Hollins did most of his damage on the ground, taking three end-arounds for a total of 40 yards. He also had a couple of catches in which he found the soft spot in the zone and sat in it nicely.

LT Kolton Miller, LG Dylan Parham

The left side of the Raiders line was secure in this one. Miller didn’t allow much in the way of pressure while Parham did work in the run game. He even twice forced his man to be flagged for illegal hands to the face to try and keep from being blocked.

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Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 10 vs Colts

As Week 11 approaches, we look back at the Ballers & Busters for the Week 10 debacle vs the Colts

Many of you have probably already moved on from the Raiders loss to the Colts last Sunday. Normally Ballers & Busters comes out early in the week, but coming down with a vicious cold on Monday put a kink in that for me, so here we are the day before their next game.

Better late than never, right? For posterity?

The way the Raiders got their two wins this season were by putting together a full four quarters. In most of their six losses, they were shut down for a full half of football. Whether that was a slow start or a late collapse. This one was a bit of both.

In the end they were still shut down for a half of football. It was simply split up between the first and fourth quarters. Hence, the slow start AND a late collapse. They were decent in between, but that won’t get it done.

Ballers

DE Maxx Crosby

As is often the case, Crosby was the best player on the field in Silver & Black. He had a run stop for no gain on the Colts’ final drive of the first quarter to hold it to a field goal.

Then he ended the Colts’ first drive of the third quarter by sacking Matt Ryan on third and one. The 14-yard loss resulted in a 48-yard field goal attempt that missed off the right upright. The play energized the offense and they drove for a touchdown and their first lead of the game at 14-13.

The Colts’ first drive of the fourth quarter was a three-and-out with Crosby making the run stop on third and nine. Once again, the offense responded with a go-ahead score. Even though in both instances, their lead didn’t last long.

P AJ Cole

Cole was launching rocket shots all game long. His punts traveled 50, 67, 61, 54, and 62 yards for an average of 58.8 yards per punt. Only one of his punts was returned past the 20-yard-line.

TE Foster Moreau

The first touchdown of the day for the Raiders was Moreau making a diving grab with a defender draped all over him. But it was also Moreau who got the Raiders in scoring range in the first place. He made the longest catch of the game for the Raiders at that point, taking a short pass for 21 yards. Then with the Raiders at the Indianapolis 36, he laid the key block to spring Josh Jacobs on a 22-yard run.

In the third quarter, the Raiders went on their second TD drive with Moreau perhaps making the key play on the drive. On second and 20, Moreau caught an 18-yard pass. They converted the third and two and scored the TD two plays later.

It’s a shame his day ended with a ball hitting both his hands in the end zone on what would’ve been the game-winning touchdown. But the moment the ball got there, it was swatted out by LB Bobby Okereke.

RB Ameer Abullah

Abdullah would’ve had an even bigger day than his four catches for 33 yards had Derek Carr not missed him wide-open over the middle late in the first quarter leading to a three-and-out.

As it stood, Abdullah had several third-down catches, converting on two, and putting them in 4th and one on the other which they converted.

He also returned a kickoff to the 38-yard-line.

WR Davante Adams

Finished with nine catches for 126 yards and a touchdown. Much of his yards came on his touchdown from 48 yards out.

Probably his most impressive catch came on the Raiders’ final drive. On third and eight, he took the pass in the right flat, broke a tackle, and dragged defenders for several yards to pick up the first down. Later in the drive, he made a catch, broke a tackle, and took it for 16 yards to the 19-yard-line.

Honorable Mention

CB Sam Webb – Kept most catches in front of him. Finished with a team-leading two pass breakups and a forced fumble.

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Raiders announce 2022 team captains

Raiders will have 8 team captains this season

Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels took to the podium for the last time prior to the team’s season opener against the Chargers. His first order of business? Naming the 2022 team captains.

McDaniels was generous with his team captains too, naming eight of them — three on offense, three on defense, and two on special teams

Offense:

QB Derek Carr
WR Davante Adams
T Kolton Miller

Defense:

LB Denzel Perryman
DE Maxx Crosby
S Duron Harmon

Special Teams:

P AJ Cole
WR Mack Hollins

The somewhat surprising players among the team captains are Duron Harmon and Mack Hollins.

Harmon may not even start at safety, with Johnathan Abram and Tre’von Moehrig starting there. And Hollins gets the nod as a kick coverage and blocking specialist.

All the others make perfect sense.

This is Miller’s first time as team captain. Last season the offensive lineman Jon Gruden named as team captain was Richie Incognito who didn’t end up playing a single game due to a calf injury.

Derek Carr and Maxx Crosby are the only captains from last season who return as captains this season.

Josh Jacobs and Darren Waller were team captains last season as well and neither are team captains this time around.

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4 Raiders players make Pro Bowl debut Sunday in home stadium

Only one team in the NFL has more players making their Pro Bowl debut Sunday than the Raiders. And they’ll do it in their home stadium.

Sunday is a special moment for many NFL players. But none more special than the four Raiders players named to the roster.

First and foremost, all four players representing the Silver & Black are doing so for the first time in their NFL careers. Only Tampa has more players making their Pro Bowl debut (5).

Secondly, these Raiders players are doing so in their home stadium in front of their home fans.

Each Raiders player has their own reason for cherishing the honor of being named to a Pro Bowl roster.

All three original Raiders were drafted in the fourth round or later. Maxx Crosby is the highest drafted player of all, selected at the 106th pick in the 4th round in 2019.

Crosby got emotional when talking about making the Pro Bowl back in December.

Hunter Renfrow was chosen in the round after Crosby 149th overall in the 2019 draft. His best season in college he had 60 catches for 602 yards. This season he went notched the most receiving yards by a Raiders wide receiver in five years (1038) and the second most catches in franchise history (103).

AJ Cole wasn’t drafted at all. He makes it to the Pro Bowl while also having been the Raiders’ only First Team All-Pro after a season in which he became just the second Raiders punter ever to average over 50 yards per punt in a season.

Denzel Perryman is making his first Pro Bowl in his seventh year in the league, so you know this honor was a long timing coming for him. He was named to the squad after leading the league in solo tackles despite missing two games.

Yeah, the game itself is not what it used to be. But these players are soaking up the atmosphere of their first ever trip to the Pro Bowl. And that trip is just down the street from their house.