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5 takeaways from Oakland Raiders’ win over New York Giants

By John Buhler

OAKLAND, CA - DECEMBER 03: Khalil Mack No. 52 of the Oakland Raiders strips Geno Smith No. 3 of the New York Giants of the ball for a turnover during their NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on December 3, 2017 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - DECEMBER 03: Khalil Mack No. 52 of the Oakland Raiders strips Geno Smith No. 3 of the New York Giants of the ball for a turnover during their NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on December 3, 2017 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images) /
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OAKLAND, CA – DECEMBER 03: Marshawn Lynch No. 24 of the Oakland Raiders runs for a 51-yard touchdown against the New York Giants during their NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on December 3, 2017 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA – DECEMBER 03: Marshawn Lynch No. 24 of the Oakland Raiders runs for a 51-yard touchdown against the New York Giants during their NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on December 3, 2017 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

Marshawn Lynch‘s dominating run style is here to stay down the stretch.

Since coming back from his one-game suspension for shoving an official in Week 7, Raiders running back Marshawn Lynch has been the best player on this Oakland offense. He just went over 100 rushing yards in a game for the first time in Raiders uniform on Sunday versus the Giants.

It looks like Beast Mode is back and here to stay. What seems to have happened is that Raiders offensive coordinator Todd Downing realizes that Lynch is a volume runner. He needs close to 20 carries in a ball game to be an effective NFL tailback. Perhaps Lynch was conserving his energy earlier in the season to save his best for a late-season playoff run?

But let’s be real though. 51 of Lynch’s 101 yards on Sunday did come on one play. It was his best run for him all season long. Man, was that fun fantastic. While he was held to just 50 yards on his final 16 carries in Week 13, that breakaway touchdown run certainly had a lingering effect on the Giants defense.

Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo was not going to let Lynch embarrass his guys that badly again. By stacking the box to account for Lynch’s power running style, it eventually opened up enough passing lanes for quarterback Derek Carr to get into rhythm and win the ball game with his arm. Running to open up the pass has given the Raiders’ offense some serious bite of late.

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