Sep 27, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Oakland Raiders running back Latavius Murray (28) dives into the end zone for a touchdown against the Cleveland Browns during the fourth quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott R. Galvin-USA TODAY Sports
Sunday in Cleveland the Oakland Raiders took a big step as a rebuilding franchise looking to move on from a decade-long plus run of failure. A team that failed to win a road game in 2014 winning their first game away from the Coliseum and their first back to back victory since the 2012 season, making the next step in general manager Reggie McKenzie’s mission to build the Raiders from the ground up. A new coaching staff has now built forward momentum going into the rest of the season with a winning record early in head coach Jack Del Rio’s reign with the team.
Trying to exorcise demons on the East Coast from the Dennis Allen era, the Raiders not only won in the dreaded Eastern time zone, they showed that they have an exciting offense that should be fun to watch for years to come. Young stars Derek Carr, Latavius Murray and Amari Cooper all having big games as for the second straight week the Raiders won by outscoring their opponent with high powered offense. Carr getting a 300+ yard day passing with two touchdowns while Murray and Cooper both had 100+ yard days in rushing/receiving as the Raiders put 27 points up on the Browns to get a 17 point lead into the fourth quarter.
While that 17 point lead turned into a sweat on the final drive of the game before Charles Woodson’s game winning interception, the win over the Browns should be seen as a mostly complete performance from a team that held the lead from start to finish on the road. Something that this team hasn’t been able to do in the post-Al Davis era. With that being said, here are five thoughts on the Raiders first win away from the Coliseum under Jack Del Rio and his coaching staff.
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