Oakland Raiders: Thoughts on blowout Week 1 loss

Sep 13, 2015; Oakland, CA, USA; Cincinnati Bengals receiver A.J. Green (18) is defended by Oakland Raiders cornerback Neiko Thorpe (31) in the second quarter at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Defensive backs earn their criticism

Going into Week 1, the Oakland Raiders defensive backs were already the most criticized position group on the roster. A lack of spending by general manager Reggie McKenzie in free agency and a lack of prospects being brought in through the draft giving the Raiders one of the worst cornerback groups in the NFL.

So it was no surprise when Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton carved up the Raiders pass coverages at will on Sunday. The veteran passer finding tight end Tyler Eifert early and often in a game where Dalton finished 25/34 for 269 passing yards with the two TD’s thrown to Eifert who finished with 104 yards in a game where the Raiders defensive backs couldn’t find any answers for the Bengals aerial attack.

If there was any doubt that the Raiders would regret not adding talent at cornerback this offseason that doubt is officially gone as the mistake in not improving a clear position of weakness is going to come back and haunt the defense this season. A young group of cornerbacks, all with their own individual potential upset, are just simply not up to the task in terms of talent and experience to hang with good passing teams.

Going up against Joe Flacco and the Ravens Week 2, defensive coordinator Ken Norton Jr. is going to have to go back to the drawing board to see how he can scheme to make up for a weakness in pass coverage. The offseason mistake in not breaking the bank for a proven cornerback is something the Raiders coaching staff has to deal with, but don’t expect people to hold their criticisms towards a group of players that just don’t appear to be good enough to make up a group of starters in the NFL.

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