The Oakland Raiders and the Denver Broncos have great pass rushes, but superior offensive line play in Oakland could give the Raiders the edge in this one.
If you play in the AFC West, you probably have an elite pass rusher, maybe two. Getting after the quarterback will be a theme in Week 4’s showdown at Mile High between the Oakland Raiders (2-1) and the Denver Broncos (2-1) on Sunday afternoon.
Both teams are coming off tough Week 3 losses and will want to keep pace with the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC West. Though Denver is favored at home, the Raiders have a great shot at beating their rival on the road in this one. Perhaps the greatest advantage Oakland has in this game is in the pass rush.
The Raiders have the defending NFL Defensive Player of the Year in defensive end Khalil Mack. He’s been terrific this season with a 90.1 overall grade from Pro Football Focus. He has been elite in both passing rushing (84.5) and in run defense this season (93.1). Mack has an incredibly favorable matchup this week in Denver right tackle Menelik Watson.
Watson has a terrible 35.7 overall grade this year on 217 total snaps. He has garnered a 36.8 grade as a pass blocker and a 36.4 grade as a run blocker. If Mack is going to have a three-sack game this season, it’ll probably come in Week 4 on the road versus the Broncos.
On the other side of the field, it could be an interesting matchup between Raiders outside linebacker Bruce Irvin and Broncos rookie left tackle Garett Bolles. Irvin has graded poorly this season (48.6 overall). While he has been bad in the pass rush (43.6), Irvin has been a solid run defender (79.2) and in coverage (71.1).
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Bolles is a first-round pick out of Utah and has played well for the Broncos in the early part of the season. He has a 67.8 overall grade. However, he has been sub-par in pass protection. Bolles only has a 46.7 grade in that department. That being said, he has been stout in run blocking at 82.7.
In short, Denver is particularly vulnerable in pass protection at tackle. Mack will certainly exploit his major mismatch over Watson in this game. Maybe this is the game where Irvin gets back to being a reliable pass rusher for Oakland? He does have a favorable matchup going against the rookie Bolles.
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Now if we flip to when the Raiders are on offense, Oakland will have to account for Denver’s elite passer rusher Von Miller. He could have a field day against Raiders right tackle Marshall Newhouse. However, the discrepancy between Miller (91.1 overall grade) and Newhouse (68.1 overall grade) isn’t as vast as the gap between Mack and Watson.
One thing that the Raiders do have to be cognizant of is if Miller wants to attack on the inside. Raiders right guard Gabe Jackson has struggled this season with a 40.8 overall grade. He has been by far the worst Raiders’ starting offensive lineman through three games.
Though Denver has a pair of solid offensive linemen in center Matt Paradis and guard Ronald Leary, Oakland has three great players along the line in tackle Donald Penn, guard Kelechi Osemele and center Rodney Hudson.
Next: Oakland Raiders: 5 keys to victory vs. Denver Broncos
It might really come down to offensive line play in this game. While Denver and Oakland can both get after the quarterback, Oakland’s superiority in pass protection could be key in the Raiders winning this key road game early in the season.