Tag: Raiders winners and losers vs Dolphins

Raiders winners and losers in 34-19 defeat vs. Dolphins

The Dolphins didn’t punt all afternoon and the Raiders couldn’t keep pace, losing their sixth straight. Which players and coaches stood out?

The Raiders offense improved slightly after a coaching change and a bye week, but Las Vegas still lost in Miami on Sunday, 34-19, their sixth straight defeat.

The Dolphins (4-6) didn’t have to punt all afternoon, and when the Raiders pulled to within one score in the fourth quarter, Miami responded with a 57-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jonnu Smith, who was completely uncovered.

Tight end Brock Bowers led the Raiders on offense with a sensational performance, but it wasn’t nearly enough. Here are this week’s winners and losers after Las Vegas fell to 2-8.

Winner: TE Brock Bowers

Bowers has excelled all season and new offensive coordinator Scott Turner made him the focal point of his offense. Bowers had 13 catches for 126 yards and one touchdown, a 23-yard catch-and-run that resulted in a 17-12 score late in the third quarter.

Bowers had several key catches, including a 4th-and-3 reception on a drive that resulted in a big touchdown from running back Ameer Abdullah. Turner couldn’t get the passing game going with his wide receivers, however, as no wideout had more than 30 receiving yards.

Winner: RB Ameer Abdullah

The Dolphins notched a touchdown after Bowers’ score, and the Raiders responded. Down 24-12 late in the game, quarterback Gardner Minshew found Abdullah in the flat and Abdullah did the rest, making a defender miss on his way to the end zone.

Abdullah did a nice job covering for running backs Zamir White and Alexander Mattison, who both left the game with injuries.

Winner: DE Tyree Wilson

The Raiders again lost the turnover battle in this game, but defensive end Tyree Wilson nearly forced one for Las Vegas early in the afternoon. His strip sack of Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa almost resulted in a takeaway but Miami recovered.

Wilson’s QB sack did push the Dolphins offense out of the red zone and force a 3rd-and-20, but a huge penalty on the Raiders gave Miami another chance to reach the end zone. They capitalized on the opportunity and took a 7-0 lead.

Winner: OC Scott Turner

The Raiders offense only punted one time all afternoon and scored on four of its first five drives before a late interception from Minshew. Turner is smart enough to get the ball to Bowers, but he doesn’t have much else to work with if the Raiders still struggle to run the football. They had just 60 rushing yards and were led in that department by WR Jakobi Meyers, who had one rush for 20 yards.

Loser: DE K’Lavon Chaisson 

The Dolphins set the tone for the game with their first drive, taking 8:13 off the clock before scoring a touchdown on 4th-and-goal at the 1-yard line.

But if not for a huge defensive holding penalty on defensive end K’Lavon Chaisson, Las Vegas would have held the Dolphins to a field goal. Chaisson committed the foul on a 3rd-and-20 play that the Raiders had covered, as the Dolphins were willing to settle for a field goal and only attempted a short pass.

Loser: CB Darnay Holmes

Cornerback Darnay Holmes started in place of an injured Nate Hobbs and had a solid day for the most part. But he had one big mistake that landed him on the loser list.

After the Raiders had pulled to within one score of the Dolphins with Abdullah’s touchdown, Miami faced a 3rd-and-5. Tagovailoa’s pass was incomplete, but Holmes had a hold of a Dolphins receiver and was called for an obvious pass interference penalty. A couple of plays later, Tagovailoa hit Smith for a 57-yard touchdown and a 31-19 Dolphins lead.

Loser: Zamir White

I try to keep players off the loser list if they get injured, but we have an exception this week. Running back Zamir White got the starting nod from Turner but still looked lost in this offense, regardless of the play caller.

He only got five chances to run the ball and produced just nine rushing yards. His offensive line gets some blame too, but this brutal season for White keeps getting worse.

Loser: DC Patrick Graham

The Raiders defense had its moments in this game, notably 10 tackles for loss. But defensive coordinator Patrick Graham had no answers for the Dolphins’ attack, failing to force even one punt.

Worst of all, when the Raiders climbed back into the game and were down five points late, the defense completely fell apart on Smith’s long touchdown. Even though the Raiders suffered multiple injuries in the secondary, unsightly botched coverages fall on Graham’s shoulders.

Loser: HC Antonio Pierce

The Dolphins had a short week after playing on Monday night, and the Raiders had an extra week to prepare thanks to their bye. The best coaches in the NFL will capitalize on that situation more often than not.

Raiders coach Antonio Pierce couldn’t take advantage. He’s rightly paid attention to improving his offense and inserted a new play caller, but his defense let him down. Pierce’s team played hard, but that was not enough. Given how mediocre the Dolphins have been this season, this game probably should have been a win for Las Vegas.

Instead, it’s difficult to remember the last time the Raiders tasted victory. They’ll have a chance to recapture that winning feeling at home next week against the Broncos.

Raiders winners and losers in 15-13 victory vs. Dolphins

Raiders winners and losers in 15-13 victory vs. Dolphins

The Raiders won yet another preseason affair on Saturday, defeating the Dolphins 15-13 to move to 3-0 in their warmup for the NFL campaign.

The game saw some Raiders that haven’t played much at all, such as defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins, get on the field, while others, such as quarterbacks Jarrett Stidham and Nick Mullens, played less, as QB Chase Garbers led Las Vegas the entire second half.

Meanwhile, the Dolphins played a healthy amount of starters, including quarterback Tua Tagovailoa.

Overall, it was a nice victory for coach Josh McDaniels, as the Dolphins took the lead in the fourth quarter before the Raiders pushed back for the winning Daniel Carlson field goal.

As always, some Raiders performed better than others. Here are this week’s winners and losers as Las Vegas prepares for joint practices with the Patriots this week.

Winner: QB Jarrett Stidham

The Raiders offense took the field to start the game, and Jarrett Stidham was seemingly under pressure as soon as he set foot on the Hard Rock Stadium turf.

Stidham got his helmet knocked off as he was sacked in the game’s opening drive, but he rebounded to complete passes in several clutch moments, including a 4th-and-4 play when he zipped the ball to tight end Jesper Horsted for a first down.

In a result that seemed impossible when the drive started, the Raiders marched 75 yards down the field in 12 plays and notched a 2-yard rushing touchdown from running back Zamir White. Without Stidham’s poise, the drive would have been over long before that point.

Winner: WR Tyron Johnson

The Raiders have a bevy of playmakers on offense, but in the lead-up to this season, it was uncertain whether the wide receiver group included a speedster who can take the lid off the defense.

It appears the situation has been resolved. Wide receiver Tyron Johnson has looked blazing fast all preseason, and on Saturday, he was Stidham’s primary weapon outside early in the game. He looked like a polished wideout, proving he can do more than be fast.

He finished with 32 yards on four receptions, but more importantly, he looked like the exact type of player Las Vegas needs in its WR room. Plus, he would have had more yards if Stidham didn’t miss him deep down the sideline on the Raiders’ second drive of the game, one of Stidham’s few miscues.

Winner: DE Tashawn Bower

The Raiders are also looking for competition at defensive end, and Tashawn Bower threw his hat into the ring on Saturday, notching a QB sack, a QB hit, two tackles for loss, and five tackles.

Linebackers Darien Butler and Curtis Bolton also took advantage of their opportunities and made an impact, with Bolton tackling the Miami QB in the end zone for a safety in the first half.

Winner: DT Johnathan Hankins

In the Raiders’ win last week, their run defense was porous. It was clear the team desperately needed its starters at defensive tackle, Johnathan Hankins and Bilal Nichols, to return from the PUP list.

Each player returned to the active roster, and Hankins saw action on Saturday. Immediately, Hankins displayed his immense worth to Patrick Graham’s 3-4 defense, as he led a striking improvement against the run. He had two tackles, including one solo stop, in limited action, and Miami ended the afternoon with just 37 yards on the ground.

The Raiders are flush with superstar pass rushers, but they still need to build a wall up front. Hankins proved he can make an impact. Ideally, for Graham, Nichols does as well when he makes his own return.

Loser: G Lester Cotton Sr. 

Though it’s hard to tell exactly, it appears Lester Cotton Sr. is on track to start the season for the Raiders at right guard. Ultimately, his overall performance on Saturday may not have hurt those chances.

But Cotton allowed a QB sack on the game’s opening drive, and the end result wasn’t pretty, as Stidham’s helmet flew off on impact.

Any time a lineman allows that to happen to his QB, that’s a losing day. Regardless of his status, Cotton should take that one personally. Plus, with G/C Dylan Parham starting at guard in place of John Simpson, it’s clear there are still three players in the mix for the two starting spots next to center Andre James.

In Cotton’s defense, however, offensive tackle Alex Leatherwood also got beat on the play, contributing to Stidham’s loose lid.

Loser: OT Alex Leatherwood

Alex Leatherwood started at right tackle against Miami after sitting until the third quarter last week. He had a rough opening series and it only got worse from there.

On consecutive plays in the second quarter, Leatherwood was bull-rushed right into his quarterback and then allowed an easy sack.

Leatherwood was removed from the game after that tough sequence, but he returned later. It appears that as soon as rookie OT Thayer Munford is healthy again, Leatherwood may sit on the bench on a permanent basis.

Loser: D.J Turner

Wide receiver D.J. Turner couldn’t build on his momentum from last week, notching just one catch in the fourth quarter of this preseason matchup.

Johnson’s performance, along with a nice game from WR Keelan Cole, may squeeze Turner out of the picture. He has potential as a punt returner, but Las Vegas has other options in that department, including superstar WR Hunter Renfrow and RB Ameer Abdullah.

Despite shaky play from the offensive line, the Raiders keep winning in the preseason. That won’t be easy to pull off in the regular season, especially in a pass-rush-rich AFC West.

But all is well in Las Vegas for now, especially with a fantastic opportunity to improve during the Raiders practice session with McDaniels’ old squad, the Patriots, in the week ahead.

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