Expect the Raiders to run the ball more in this game
While Raider Nation would love to see quarterback Derek Carr air it out the entire afternoon, the better offensive strategy in this game is to ground-and-pound once the Oakland lead is sizable. The Raiders have the tailbacks and the offensive line to keep the chains moving.
In a way, it would be a different sort of game plan than what we saw out of the Raiders last year. A year ago, Oakland battled thrilling shootouts all the time. It was about the vertical passing game offensively and the pass rush defensively. Week 2 would be nice to see more runs between the tackles and offensively to chew up some precious clock.
Since this will be running back Marshawn Lynch’s first regular season game playing in front of the home crowd, you better expect offensive coordinator Todd Downing to draw up a few plays in the red zone to give Lynch that first touchdown in the Silver and Black.
Downing doesn’t have to lean on Lynch exclusively. He can use Jalen Richard and DeAndre Washington to keep the ground game going, after Downing slowly works Lynch out of the game. Let’s get that Beast Mode touchdown run on the first drive of the first quarter. The Coliseum will erupt most magnificently.