Tag: Raiders Winners and Losers

Raiders winners and losers in 20-13 defeat vs. Dolphins

Raiders winners and losers in 20-13 defeat vs. Dolphins

The Raiders went toe-to-toe against a tough Dolphins squad for four quarters on Sunday but came up short, losing 20-13 in Miami.

It was Las Vegas’ first loss under interim coach Antonio Pierce, but the Raiders had a chance to tie the score late until quarterback Aidan O’Connell threw an interception in the end zone with just seconds remaining.

The Raiders’ defense forced three turnovers and overcame a Las Vegas offense that sputtered in the second half, not allowing a single point to the high-flying Dolphins in the fourth quarter. Unfortunately for coach Pierce, the Raiders failed to score a point of their own after the break.

Here are the winners and losers for the week, as the Raiders fall to 5-6.

Winner: Raiders defense/DC Patrick Graham

Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham led an effort the Raiders defense can be proud of. The Dolphins offense had their share of impressive plays and ended up with 422 total yards, but two recovered fumbles by Las Vegas and an interception by safety Isaiah Pola-Mao on Miami’s first play of the second half helped hold off any sustained Dolphins charge.

The Raiders red zone defense impressed as well, forcing a turnover on downs inside the 10-yard line early in the second quarter. Las Vegas also forced Miami into three field goal tries, which is a high number of attempts for their potent offense.

Their effort in the fourth quarter gave the Raiders offense a chance to capitalize, but three second-half interceptions from O’Connell —with two coming in the final frame — loomed large.

Winner: S Isaiah Pola-Mao

Pola-Mao helped cover for an injury to S Marcus Epps and made a positive impact. First, he was in on a 4th-and-1 stop in the red zone, as he and cornerback Nate Hobbs stopped superstar wide receiver Tyreek Hill for a loss on a swing pass.

Pola-Mao’s interception gave the Raiders solid field position, but the offense failed to convert points on that possession. Overall, Las Vegas scored just six points off of turnovers.

Winner: LB Luke Masterson/CB Nate Hobbs

Linebacker Luke Masterson and Hobbs each forced a fumble, recovered by Epps and LB Divine Deablo, respectively. Each play occurred in the first half, and the Raiders converted each turnover into a field goal.

Considering the Raiders didn’t score at all in the second half, those missed chances for six points instead of three became the difference in the game. This includes a conservative approach on offense after Hobbs’ forced fumble just before the first half came to a close.

Winner: WR Hunter Renfrow

We had a confirmed Renfrow sighting on Sunday. Wide receiver Hunter Renfrow had a spectacular catch and run in the second half, as Vegas desperately attempted to even the score at 20 in the final quarter.

Unfortunately for the Raiders, the drive ended in one of O’Connell’s interceptions (this one a wild attempt as O’Connell fell backward to the ground on fourth down), but Renfrow displayed elite, jaw-dropping athleticism as he hurdled a Miami defender.

Winner: QB Aidan O’Connell/WR Davante Adams

O’Connell was on fire in the first quarter, posting a 143.8 QB rating. That was largely because of a 46-yard touchdown toss to superstar WR Davante Adams, which gave Vegas a 10-7 lead. Notably, O’Connell didn’t mind the extra defenders in the area and gave Adams a chance to make a play.

The entire Raiders offense slowed to a near halt after that play, and O’Connell had his three interceptions after the break. But these two are on the winner list because, despite a missed connection in the fourth quarter, their chemistry is improving by the week. If the Raiders are to make a move down the stretch, O’Connell and Adams have to lead the way. On Sunday, they made a huge step in the right direction.

Winner: Coach Antonio Pierce

The Raiders fought hard in this game and gave themselves a chance to beat a superior opponent on the road. It’s a tough loss, but coach Antonio Pierce deserves credit for having his team ready to play. If Las Vegas gives that level of effort every week, they’ll eventually start winning more than they lose.

Honorable mention for the winner list is LB Robert Spillane, who had 13 tackles (six solo) and continues to lead an over-achieving defense.

Loser: RB Josh Jacobs/Run game

A week ago against the Jets, the Raiders kept pounding the run game, featuring RB Josh Jacobs, and eventually broke through. Against the Dolphins, that wasn’t the case. Jacobs ended up with just 39 yards on 14 carries.

Given how close the game was, just a few more timely runs could have made a huge difference, especially in short-yardage situations.

Loser: Short yardage offense/OC Bo Hardegree

The Raiders were 4-for-14 on third-down tries and failed on two fourth-down attempts that came in the fourth quarter.

Las Vegas had plenty of chances before the final frame on third and short, including a failed flea flicker attempt on 3rd-and-1 in the third quarter. Additionally, Jacobs was stuffed for a loss on 3rd-and-1 after Pola-Mao’s interception.

New offensive coordinator Bo Hardegree faces the same issue as his predecessor: a suspect offensive line. Somehow, he has to find some short-yardage plays that can overcome Las Vegas’ inconsistent group up front.

Loser: CB Jakorian Bennett

It’s been a year of lessons for rookie cornerback Jakorian Bennett. After beginning the season as a starter, he’s only seen intermittent action and had some rough moments.

In the first quarter in Miami, a hold on Bennett wiped out a QB sack from defensive end Malcolm Koonce on a 3rd-and-11 play. The Dolphins scored a touchdown on the drive to take a 7-3 lead.

The Raiders took a step back in the standings on Sunday, but they perhaps took a step forward as a franchise. It’s hard to imagine the previous regime playing the Dolphins this tough, and if Pierce can get the same effort out of his team in each remaining week this season, things could get interesting in Vegas. They’ll have yet another massive test next week against the Chiefs at Allegiant Stadium.

Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 10 win over Jets

Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 10 win over Jets

The way this one played out was pretty much exactly as everyone expected. In the lead up to the game, I basically kept thinking to myself ‘first to 16 wins’. That’s because ain’t nobody was gonna be scoring more than one touchdown and if either team did, that would be the deciding factor.

That team was the Raiders, who beat the Jets 16-12.

Ballers

LB Robert Spillane

Even if you remove his late game clutch interception, Spillane might still have been the best player in this contest. And that’s saying a lot.

Spillane was on a mission. At least four times in this game, plays he made were the deciding factor in stopping a Jets’ drive.

Come the second quarter, the Jets had scored on their first three possessions to go up 9-3. Thanks to Spillane, they wouldn’t score again until the fourth quarter.

Their next three possessions ended with Spillane making the play. A run stuff for no gain on third and two, a sack on second and two, and forcing a hold on third and 21 then making the stop on third and 22.

Then with the Jets within four at 16-12 and driving late in the fourth quarter, he stepped in front of the Zach Wilson pass for his third interception of the season. This one with a cast on his right hand. Unbelievable.

TE Michael Mayer

It was a back-and-forth game with the Raiders failing to take the lead once in the first three quarters. That ended on the first play of the fourth quarter when Aidan O’Connell escaped pressure and put a ball up high where only Mayer could get it and Mayer leapt in the air, plucking it from over the top of the defender to the go-ahead score.

It was Mayer’s first touchdown as a pro and it was a beauty. And in a game like this, it proved to be enough to get the W.

DE Maxx Crosby

This game started poorly for the Raiders, with a 41-yard catch and run that put them in scoring range. It would go no further thanks to Crosby. He flew in for what should be credited as a sack. And when I say that, I think a rule change is in order, which states that if you have the player wrapped up and he is flagged for intentional grounding, that should be a sack. For the purposes of the game, it was the same. The Jets lost ten yards and a down and couldn’t make it back up, settling for a field goal.

It was big plays on each drive that put the Jets in scoring range. Their third one came off of an interception and moved them into first and goal at the three. A touchdown here may have been devastating in a game this close. So, Crosby wrecked it. He forced a holding penalty that backed them up to the 13. Then was in on the run stop on second and goal and the Jets would settle for a third field goal.

DT Jerry Tillery, DT John Jenkins, DT Adam Butler

Jenkins had a run stuff on the Jets’ first drive. Tillery upended the second drive when he forced a holding penalty. Butler ended the third drive on third and goal when he batted the ball down at the line.

The next possession, Jenkins had another run stuff for no gain. Then the drive after that, he got one of his big mitts on a pass to bat it at the line. Come the third quarter, Butler had a tackle for loss on a three-and-out.

The first drive of the fourth quarter ended with Tillery getting all the way out to the left boundary to help Divine Deablo lead Zach Wilson out of bounds to end the drive. And on the Spillane interception, it was Tillery who got around his man to get pressure in Wilson’s face and force the throw.

RB Josh Jacobs

His two fumbles in the game really had me thinking whether he deserved to be on this list. In the end I decided that because his hard running was such a key factor in the Raiders scoring 16 points in the first place, he deserved more credit than blame.

His first fumble came on the tail end of a 40-yard burst and it bounced out of bounds. The run put the Raiders at the 13-yard-line. The next play he ran for five yards to the eight. Two plays later, they scored the touchdown.

In the early going, yards were tough to come by for Jacobs against a stout Jets defensive front. Even so, his running was a major factor in several scoring drives. Their second scoring drive came near the end of the second quarter and featured runs of six yards and eight yards — both of which the Raiders made the first down on the next play.

The third scoring drive saw Jacobs convert a third and two and a fourth and one along with the longest play of the drive that went for 12 yards on a catch in the left flat. That drive tied the game at 9-9.

Just prior to his lost fumble late in the fourth, Jacobs showed he is still a strong runner late in games, when broke several tackles and carried defenders the final five yards of a seven-yard first down run. He also had a nine-yard run and converted on third and one on that drive.

Jacobs finished with 116 yards rushing — his first time going over 100 yards this season — and added two catches for 11 yards.

K Daniel Carlson

The Jets have the man once known at ‘Greg the Leg’ and ‘Legatron’. And the Raiders have the best in the game today in Carlson. Both kickers were doing work in this one, with Carlson splitting them from 40, 41, and 54 yards.

Honorable Mention

WR DeAndre Carter — Had a 32-yard kick return to the Jets 45 that helped lead to the game-tying field goal. Later had a 15-yard run on fourth and one.

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Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 8 loss vs Lions

Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 8 loss vs Lions

Every week seems to be worse than the last for these Raiders. Which is saying a lot considering how terrible they looked last week in Chicago.

This week they were in Detroit against a much better team. And they were thoroughly outclassed and outcoached en route to a Lions 26-14 win.

Despite three takeaways, the offense Raiders never led.

They were down 9-0 early on. The Raiders had an improbable touchdown drive in the game. Improbable considering they did absolutely nothing on offense the rest of the game. The Raiders twice pulled to within two points, but both Raiders scores were immediately answered with a touchdown drive by the Lions.

Ballers

DE Maxx Crosby

Crosby’s place atop the Ballers is becoming like the RSTLNE on Wheel of Fortune. It’s the given.

Crosby flew in to make a tackle for no gain on a run that put the Lions in third and long on their first drive and they settled for a field goal. Later in the first quarter, he forced Jared Goff to step up in the pocket where he was hit and threw incomplete. They couldn’t pick up the third and long and punted. One of just two Lions punts in the game.

He wasn’t fooled on an end around in the second quarter lay a big hit on Jameson Williams that knocked his helmet off for a six-yard loss. The Lions would settle for another field goal to make it a 9-0 lead. He had another run stuff for no gain to start the next drive.

The first drive of the third quarter for the Lions, Crosby had a run stuff at the line and later ripped the ball out inside the four-yard-line to keep the Lions from putting the game away. They would ultimately put the game away, but Crosby’s efforts kept the Raiders in it until the fourth quarter.

DT Adam Butler

To lead out the second quarter, the Lions were in scoring position again. They would line up in second and goal from the 16 and Butler made a run stop for a two-yard loss to put them in third and goal from the 18. They couldn’t pick it up and settled for another field goal.

The next drive, on third and nine from the 15, Butler batted down a pass at the line, and the Lions settled for a third field goal. He added a QB hit for an incompletion in the third quarter.

CB Marcus Peters

He finally got one. After going for the pick or the strip at the expense of making the tackle in the first seven games, Peters finally got an interception. And as he has done six times previously in his career, Peters took that pick and returned it for a touchdown. He went 75 yards for that score too, scoring as many points all by himself as the entire offense did.

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Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 7 loss to Bears

Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 7 loss to Bears

One of the tougher tasks I have occasionally had in the 16 years I’ve been doing this series is finding anything positive in a seemingly complete collapse. This was one of those times.

The hapless Bears jumped to a 14-0 lead in this game and never looked back. The Raiders couldn’t stop the Chicago offense led by undrafted rookie QB Tyson Bagent. Mostly because they couldn’t stop the ground game and found themselves on their heels all game long.

It was so bad that even the final score didn’t accurately reflect the disparity. The final six points was a garbage time score after they were down 30-6. And honestly we all knew once the Raiders went down 21-3 in the third quarter, that was the clincher. After all, the Raiders offense hadn’t broken the 20-point barrier all season, and they were clearly not going to do it on this day.

But, as we typically do, let’s start with the glimmer of good before we go to the myriad of bad.

Ballers

DE Maxx Crosby

The best all-around edge rusher in the NFL is often the exception for the Raiders. Nearly every week he is not just a Baller, but the Top Baller. Even if that isn’t all that difficult to do on this team.

The defense didn’t hold up well most of the game, but every time they did, Crosby was the reason why.

The day began on a high note. The Bears won the toss and made the rare decision to start on offense. Then the Raiders forced a three-and-out, which immediately put them at an advantage. That advantage was created because on second down, Crosby got pressure to set up Bilal Nichols to make a tackle for loss and the Bears couldn’t dig out of it.

Down 7-0 to begin the second quarter, the Bears began driving again, picking up a couple first downs. Then Crosby burst into the backfield, forcing a holding penalty on his man and the Bears once again could not overcome it and punted.

Down 14-3 late in the second quarter, the Bears were threatening again. They moved into Vegas territory at the 47 and would get no further. Crosby flew in for the sack to put them back in their own territory with seconds left and that ended that.

That was as close as the Raiders would get. Still within two scores. Unfortunately Crosby can’t do it all by himself and the Bears were able to extend their lead, while the offense not only couldn’t close the gap, but actually made it worse with a late pick-six to turn this one into a laugher.

WR Jakobi Meyers

The Raiders had three scoring drives in the game. The first one featured a heavy dose of Meyers. He caught four consecutive passes for a combined 34 yards to put the Raiders in scoring range.

The second scoring drive featured a catch my Meyers to convert on third-and-three and a four-yard catch on second-and-goal from the ten.

He would later catch the Raiders only touchdown in the game. Even if it was a meaningless one in garbage time.

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Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 6 win over Patriots

Raiders Week 6 Ballers & Busters in their win over Patriots

It’s honestly a wonder the Raiders now sit at .500. After losing three straight, they have put two wins together to pull to 3-3 on the season. Even though the offense has yet to score even 20 points in a game.

They have won their three games by a combined nine points with the offense topping out at 19 points on the season. Much of that is a factor of playing a few truly horrible teams with their wins coming against teams with just four wins combined.

But, hey, you beat the team in front of you and a win is a win. So, let’s look at this week’s best and worst performances, shall we.

Ballers

DE Maxx Crosby

Crosby wasn’t perfect in this game. His big mistake was a terrible roughing the passer penalty that set up the Patriots’ second TD which pulled them to within a field goal of the win. But when the Raiders needed him most, he once again stepped up and proved he is the glue holding this team together.

With the Patriots in third and 15 in the shadow of their own end zone, Crosby got into the backfield to sack Mac Jones for a safety and end the game. That makes up for any number of mistakes Crosby had before that.

And let’s not act like he was actually bad before that play. He was still the engine of that defense. He tied for the team lead with seven tackles and got to the quarterback at least twice along with a batted pass. He was the primary factor in at least three Patriots stalled drives, including getting a pressure that helped lead to the Pats only turnover.

DT Bilal Nichols

Crosby was credited for half the sack for a safety because Nichols came up the gut as well.

TE Michael Mayer

It was the coming out party for the Raiders’ second round rookie. Coming into the game he had just three catches on the season. He had that on the team’s first drive. The first three catches of the game went to Mayer for a total of 35 yards. Two of those catches were on third down and they went for an opening drive field goal.

The second scoring drive saw Mayer make a catch and break several tackles to pick up 32 yards on third and six. That drive went for a touchdown.

In the third quarter, Mayer had a seven-yard catch on third and seven that put the Raiders at the 11-yard-line, leading to a short field goal and a 16-10 lead,

WR Jakobi Meyers

Meyers played well against his former team, catching five passes for 61 yards and the Raiders’ only touchdown. Two plays before that, he made a six-yard catch on third and five to keep the drive alive and set his team up at the 13-yard-line.

Just prior to half time, Meyers had catches of 14 and 16 yards to put them in range of a short field goal and a 13-3 lead.

S Tre’von Moehrig

His big play was the interception late in the second quarter. The Patriots were driving and were in scoring range until Mac Jones rolled out right and lobbed a gift wrapped ball for Moehrig. The Raiders would score off the turnover just before the half.

Moehrig had a stellar game overall though. He only gave up one catch for seven yards in the game. He also made a run stuff at the line on first and goal from the three and later had a tackle on a catch for minimal gain.

Honorable Mention

K Daniel Carlson — scored 12 of the Raiders 21 points all on short field goals.

WR Tre Tucker — Had the longest completion in the game on a 48-yard bomb from Brian Hoyer to lead off the second half.

DT John Jenkins — Started a three-and-out in the third quarter with a sack that allowed the Raiders to score six unanswered points after the Patriots had pulled to within three.

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Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 5 win over Packers

Raiders Ballers & Busters in win over Packers

It was another nail-biter for the Raiders Monday Night, but this time they came out on top, finishing with a 17-13 win over the visiting Packers.

Just like the Raiders first win of the season, it was a low-scoring affair. This one featured four turnovers, with three of them coming via interceptions by the Raiders.

The Packers struck first with a long drive to go up 3-0 in the first quarter. Come the second quarter, the Raiders put together a hard-fought drive to go ahead 7-3 and added a field goal off their first takeaway to take a 10-3 lead at the half.

The Packers took one back early in the third quarter and took advantage of the short field to tie it up at 10-10. Then they got a huge 77-yard reception from Christian Watson, but couldn’t finish it off and went up 13-10 on a short field goal.

The goal-line stand by the Raiders defense inspired the Raiders offense and they put together their best drive of the game to go up 17-13. And that would prove to be the final score.

DE Maxx Crosby

Earning Defensive Player of the Week was a pretty good sign that Crosby was the Top Baller for the Raiders in this game.

Several drives he stopped almost single-handedly. He got a pressure that led to a run stuff on the first drive that ended a play later with a punt. Early in the second quarter, the Packers had a four-play drive, with Crosby making a run stop for a loss and a pressure that led to a two-yard catch.

Later in the second quarter, with the Raiders just having taken a 10-3 lead, he had another run stop for a loss and another pressure that led to an incompletion to force a three-and-out and give the Raiders another shot at scoring before the half. Then, just for good measure, he got one more pressure on the final play of the second quarter.

The Raiders came back to take the lead on the first play of the fourth quarter. And Crosby set out to keep it. The ensuing Packers drive made it to the Vegas 40-yard-line. Then Crosby broke through for a sack to back them up to the 47. In their attempt to get that yardage back, Jordan Love threw his second interception.

A quick three-and-out for the Raiders offense and Crosby and Co. were back on the field. No problem, Crosby returned the favor, getting pressure on a screen attempt to force an incompletion and laying a hit on Jordan Love that led to another incompletion.

LB Robert Spillane, CB Marcus Peters, CB Amik Robertson

The turnover crew. And for once, that’s a good thing for the Raiders.

Spillane got things started, when he read Jordan Love’s eyes on a pass in the second quarter, picking it off and returning it to the seven-yard-line. The Raiders offense was unable to do anything with it and settled for a field goal to go up 10-3.

Spillane got another one, this time off a pass breakup that was tipped in the air by Peters. It stopped a drive that had moved into Vegas territory as the Packers looked to either pull to within a point or take the lead.

Peters’s big day started before that, however, when he made a touchdown saving tackle off a 77-yard catch by Christian Watson. Peters was called for a horsecollar, but who cares. He gave the Raiders’ defense a chance and they held the line to keep the Packers out of the end zone.

Robertson was the one who gave up that 77-yard catch to Watson, but he got the last laugh when the 5-9 cornerback leapt high above the 6-4 receiver to make the game-sealing interception.

WR Jakobi Meyers

While the Packers made a point to try and take their former teammate Davante Adams out of the game, Meyers was the beneficiary.

On the Raiders’ first scoring drive, he had a ten-yard catch on third and five and the touchdown catch from nine yards out. He would help put them in scoring range again just before the half with an 18-yard sliding grab on third and ten, followed by a 16-yard catch. Unfortunately Daniel Carlson’s 53-yard field goal was blocked.

The team’s final scoring drive was kept alive with an eight-yard catch by Meyers on third and four. After that, the Raiders finally managed to get Adams involved and went for their second touchdown.

P AJ Cole

His first punt was a beauty that went 55 yards and bounced out of bounds at the seven-yard-line. His next punt was fair caught at the ten-yard-line. His third punt went 53 yards with a two-yard return to the 17. His final punt was also stopped at the 17-yard-line, which was the best field position the Packers had off of any of his punts in the game.

RB Josh Jacobs

Jacobs put up 89 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown. A good portion of that came on two drives late in the game. He led off a drive late in the third quarter with a 24-yard run that began with a wicked dead leg fake out that left Jaire Alexander reaching at air. He added a six-yard run on the next play and would end up finishing off the drive with a touchdown run from two yards out.

His best play early on wasn’t even with him touching the ball. In fourth and one from the 16-yard-line, the Raiders ran a sweep with DeAndre Carter that was converted because Jacobs laid a big time block. They punched it in for the touchdown two plays later.

Late in the game, when they needed him most, he got the ball on six of seven plays for 29 yards of offense and put the Raiders in scoring range. But Carlson’s 52-yard field goal clanked off the right upright.

He had 63 yards of offense on those two drives alone, first to take the lead, and then to try and run clock and extend it.

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Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 4 loss to Chargers

Raiders Week 4 Ballers & Busters

It was a third straight loss for the Raiders in a game that most of the way didn’t even look close. Though the Raiders were able to make it interesting late, pulling one play away from a potential tie — they could not get over the hump and watched another one slip by them.

Ballers

DE Maxx Crosby

Crosby didn’t get the headlines because of Khalil Mack’s insane six-sack day, but the man who would eventually replace Mack with the Raiders had a good day as well. Crosby put up two sacks of his own and even led the Raiders in tackles.

RB Josh Jacobs

Easily his best game of the season. Jacobs led the team with eight catches for 81 yards for a total of 139 yards from scrimmage and a touchdown.

WR Davante Adams

He and Aidan O’Connell got off to a slow start in this one, but as the game went on, they got more acquainted. In the end, Adams nearly dragged the Raiders kicking and screaming back from the depth. Five of his eight catches came on the Raiders’ final two drives, including a 19-yard catch on fourth and ten that put them in first and goal at the three. O’Connell threw an interception on the next play.

S Tre’von Moehrig

Speaking of interceptions, the Raiders got their first of the season in this game. Moehrig had two chances at picking off a Justin Herbert pass. The first one was in the end zone and he got both hands on it, but was bumped in the air by the receiver and was unable to come up with it. But the next time he got a shot at it, he made the catch.

Unfortunately, a penalty on the return would make it the equivalent of a fair catch on a punt, but that wasn’t his fault. Had his return stood, he would’ve put the Raiders in great field position.

DT John Jenkins, DT Bilal Nichols

It was good to see a couple of the Raiders’ interior linemen do some good work. Jenkins tied for second on the team in tackles, many of which were for a loss or little to no gain. He also batted a pass down at the line. Nichols held up at the line to make the stop on two separate QB sneak attempts. His tackle on Justin Herbert on a scramble just short of the sticks set up a fourth and one stop and gave the Raiders’ offense one more chance to tie it.

P AJ Cole

Cole averaged 53.8 yards per punt on five punts. This included a 61-yard punt and a 70-yard punt that was downed at the five-yard-line.

FB Jakob Johnson

Johnson was laying blocks much like we saw a lot of last season, opening some sizable holes for Josh Jacobs to run through. This included a block downfield on a Jacobs catch, allowing him to go for 21 yards on third and 18. That set up a field goal to pull to within two scores.

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Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 3 loss to Steelers

Raiders Ballers & Busters vs Steelers

The home opener began with festivities, with the family of Ken Stabler receiving his Hall of Fame Ring of Excellence during pregame. And the game started with some defense on both sides that was reminiscent of those 70s rivalries.

The Steelers were stopped for a three-and-out on their first two possessions and the Raiders were stopped for a three-and-out in between.

Then the Raiders offense put on a nice-looking drive that would have made Stabler and Company proud to go up 7-0 on their old rival Steelers.

But the Steelers answered quickly on a play in which Calvin Austin III looked like Cliff Branch, going 72 yards for the touchdown.

From there, it was a whole lot of Steelers and not enough Raiders. Even still, we will start, as we often do, with the Ballers.

Ballers

WR Davante Adams

Adams was open a lot in this game and even when he wasn’t, Jimmy Garoppolo was looking for him. The result was 13 catches for 172 yards and both of the Raiders’ touchdowns.

The first pass of the game went to Adams for five yards. Then he began the next drive with catches for nine and 19 yards and finished it off with a 32-yard touchdown catch.

Four times in the second and third quarter, Adams made catches to convert on third and and get the Raiders Pittsburgh territory. The first two drives ended in an interception, while the third ended with a turnover on downs.

Finally, in the fourth quarter, his efforts paid off. He started the drive with a 26-yard catch and finished it with a touchdown on third and goal from the one.

Adams had a 12-yard catch on the Raiders’ last drive, but when the chips were down and he should’ve been given a shot to catch the potential game-tying score, the Raiders settled for a field goal instead.

DE Maxx Crosby

The two Super Stars on this team shined as bright as ever Sunday night. You just kind of wish they didn’t have to so often do it on their own. Crosby ended three of the Steelers’ six first-half possessions, first with a pressure to force an incompletion, then by getting the sack, and then with a run stop and another pressure to force an incompletion.

Unfortunately, the Steelers also scored on three of those six possessions, including one thanks in part to Crosby not keeping his cool and drawing a personal foul penalty for pulling a player off the pile.

Crosby did his best to wreck the Steelers’ first drive of the third quarter with a QB hit resulting in an incompletion, a run stuff, and forcing Kenny Pickett to throw the ball away on third down. They would still manage to add three points on a 57-yard field goal, though.

Not surprisingly, Crosby would lead the team with two QB hits and had the Raiders’ only sack in the game.

CB Nate Hobbs

Hobbs led the team with two pass breakups and tied for third in tackles. Both of his pass breakups came on third down. The first held the Steelers to a field goal early in the second quarter and the second came after the Raiders pulled the game to within eight to force a three-and-out when the Raiders desperately needed it.

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Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 2 loss to Bills

Raiders Week 2 Ballers & Busters

Safe to say this is one the Raiders would like to put behind them. But hopefully not before they try and learn from it. If there is anything to learn other than that they just can’t hang with a team like the Bills.

Things looked promising on the opening drive for the Raiders, just as they did in the opener in Denver. But it didn’t last long. A 7-0 lead in the first three minutes was a 21-10 deficit at the half and ended with a 38-10 demolition.

It’s hard to pinpoint much of anything that was actually working for the Raiders. Which should be pretty clear in this weeks Busters. But before we get to those details, let’s get the few Ballers out of the way.

Ballers

WR Davante Adams

As if often the case, Adams is a rare bright light in the darkness. He made a 16-yard back shoulder grab to convert the first third down of the game and then ended the opening drive by taking a screen pass 17 yards to the house.

The other scoring drive for the Raiders, Adams caught a 19-yard pass on third and 11 and later in the drive put the team in scoring range by breaking off his route and getting behind the DB to make a 21-yard catch.

He finished with six catches for 84 yards and a touchdown.

T Kolton Miller

He kept Garoppolo’s blind side protected all day and on the Adams touchdown screen, he got out wide to make the block.

S Marcus Epps

Epps did his best to stop to the Bills from scoring in the first quarter. He broke on a pass in the flat to stop it for a loss and two plays later made the stop on third down to bring up fourth and one. But as happened most of the day, the Bills converted it and went on to score anyway.

The one time in the game the Raiders were actually able to stop the Bills  on fourth and short, Epps set it up by making the stop on a Josh Allen scramble at the goal line.

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Ballers & Busters for Raiders Week 12 vs Seahawks

Digging into the tape to give out some recognition for another hard-fought OT Raiders win in week 12

For the second game in as many weeks the Raiders won a walk-off game in overtime. This one had much more scoring in the game itself, leading to the 34-34 tie at the end of regulation. It wasn’t always pretty, but there were some wow moments along the way and the Raiders once again came out victorious.

Ballers

RB Josh Jacobs

Now the reigning AFC Offensive Player of the Week. Jacobs had a monster game by any measure. But especially in terms of stats, where he finished with a career-high 229 yards rushing with two touchdowns along with 74 yards through the air to give him 303 yards from scrimmage and two scores.

The first TD came on a toss from 30 yards out to give the Raiders their biggest lead of the day at 21-13.

The Seahawks answered with a touchdown drive of their own to bring it back to a one-point game. With just over five minutes left in the first half, the Raiders looked to Jacobs to sustain a long drive. After a couple five-yard runs early in the drive, the Raiders found themselves in 4th and two. Jacobs got the ball on a toss and picked up seven yards to put the Raiders in field goal range, allowing them to score to take a 24-20 lead at the half.

Down 34-27 with just over five minutes left in the game, the Raiders would need to once again drive for a score. This time a field goal wouldn’t cut it. The third play of the drive, Jacobs caught a pass for 14 yards to put them at the Seahawks’ 33-yard-line. A few plays later, he put the Raiders in first and goal at the ten and they went on to score the game-tying touchdown.

Jacobs did his part to put the Raiders in scoring position to start overtime, with three runs for 24 yards, but it stalled at the 38-yard-line, and Daniel Carlson missed the 56-yard field goal attempt.

The defense held to give Jacobs another shot and he took that opportunity and ran with it…86 yards to the house on the first play of the drive to end the game.

His big game helped him become the league’s top rusher at 1159 yards. Already a career-high with five games still left.

WR Mack Hollins, WR Davante Adams

The first long pass play of the game went to Hollins on third-and-four on the Raiders second possession. It went for 20 yards to put the Raiders in business at the Seattle 23-yard-line. Three plays later they tied the game at 7-7.

The first big play for Jacobs had involved Hollins and Adams. Down 13-7 in the second quarter, with Derek Carr already throwing two interceptions, the Raiders offense needed a spark.

A couple nice Adams catches gave them two first downs to put them at the Seattle 36-yard-line. Then Jacobs got the handoff up the middle, the Seahawks sold out to stop him. With the defense committed, Jacob pitched it back to Carr on the flea flicker, barely getting it back to him as defenders swarmed him.

Adams and Hollins played it perfectly, with Hollins acting like he was blocking, and Adams slowing up as if he was a decoy. The moment the pitch back happened, Adams picked up speed, drawing a double team from the the only remaining Seahawks left in the secondary. So when Hollins peeled off his blocked he was completely uncovered with plenty of open field in front him for an easy 36-yard catch and run for the score and a 14-13 lead. That play was a clinic in how to execute a successful flea flicker.

Down 34-27 late in the game, the Raiders needed a TD drive. That drive started with an incredible one-handed grab by Adams up the right sideline. The defender was holding Adams’s left hand down, so he simply reached up and snagged the pass with his right hand and pinned it to his chest for a 28-yard grab. A few plays later he caught a pass in the right flat, broke a tackle and picked up a first down at the 22.

Still tied at 34-34 in overtime, Jacobs broke through for his 86-yard touchdown run. And he hit the next gear and ran away thanks to a downfield block from Hollins.

FB Jakob Johnson, RT Jermaine Eluemunor, C Andre James

Hollins wasn’t the only one to help open things up for Jacobs on that game-winning run. The initial hole to get him to the second level was opened by Eluemunor and Johnson. They gave him the daylight, and Jacobs took it from there.

That was Jacobs’s second TD of the game. His first TD came on a toss in the second quarter. Once again Johnson was there to clear a path for him as was James.

James also laid key blocks on a couple big runs by Zamir White to set up a game-tying field goal in the third quarter. While Eluemunor blocked for Jacobs on another couple nice runs, one of which was on the first drive of overtime.

DT Andrew Billings, DE Maxx Crosby, DE Chandler Jones

Carr’s two interceptions in the first quarter, put the defense in a tough spot to try and stop the Seahawks from scoring. But in between, they did some good work. In particular, Billings shot up the middle to get a run stuff for a loss and share of a sack. Jones and Crosby helped with the sack by getting around the outside, forcing Geno Smith to step into a quickly closing pocket.

It was a new game at 27-27 in the third quarter, and the three-and-out that came afterward was completed in part because Jones did a nice job disguising. He made it look as if he was coming on the rush and after one step. turned to follow the tight end, thus closing off the outside for the screen, stopping it in its tracks and forcing a punt.

Jones’s final act falling on a fumbled handoff to stop what would have been a scoring drive for the Seahawks, and giving the Raiders the ball back.

The Raiders offense couldn’t capitalize on the turnover this time. When the Seahawks took over on downs, Billings and Crosby teamed up to sack Smith.

After the Raiders tied it up at 34-34, the defense still needed a stop. The Seahawks had 1:54 left to score. They got one first down and then found themselves in third-and-10. Cue Maxx Crosby who shot in to get another sack and send the game to overtime. Second straight week he did that.

As is often the case, Crosby clearly got stronger as the game went longer. In OT, the Seahawks got the ball with a chance to win it, but instead went three-and-out. On third and five, Crosby flew around the edge, using his wingspan to grab Smith’s throwing arm with the QB barely getting the pass off. All he that did was save a few yards as the pass went into the turf and the Seahawks punted it back. You know what happened next.

LB Denzel Perryman

The man who deals with the coverage criticism probably a lot more than he should, made the Raiders’ biggest play on defense in coverage. As middle linebackers are asked to do from time to time, he dropped back to patrol the middle zone and watch the quarterback’s eyes. That put him in the right position to pick off Geno Smith’s pass and return it 25 yards to the Seattle 30. And the Raiders converted the takeaway to the touchdown in one play to take a 21-13 lead.

Come the third quarter, the score was tied up at 27-27 and Perryman shot into the backfield to make a tackle for loss, leading to a three-and-out. It was still tied up heading into the fourth quarter and Perryman chased down Kenneth Walker trying to find round outside to stop him for a 13-yard loss.

Perryman finished with a team-leading nine tackles, two for a loss, along with his interception.

LT Kolton Miller

Kept the left edge clean and free from blindside pressure to give Carr plenty of time. That’s most of his job and he did it perfectly.

Honorable Mention

QB Derek Carr — He spotted the Seahawks with two scores early with two interceptions in the first quarter. But kudos to Carr for shaking it off and throwing three touchdowns to help send the Raiders to overtime. The first and third TD’s to Abdullah and Moreau were absolute dimes for throws too.

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