Oakland Raiders at Miami Dolphins: Raiders offensive grades
It’s the same story, different game for the Oakland Raiders after losing to the Miami Dolphins 28-20. A second half collapse seems to be the theme for 2018 so far.
There just isn’t anything like Oakland Raiders torture for fans. The team dropped to 0-3 after another loss. This time by the hands of the Miami Dolphins with a score of 28-20. The Raiders once again dominated the majority of the game, but for some reason still can’t find a way to close games. From an offensive standpoint, the Raiders were looking to build off of last weeks strong showing. I’d say for the most part, much like against Denver, they accomplished that. However, both of these games felt exactly the same for the offense.
Both of these games they couldn’t go for the opposing teams throat and end it. Too many opportunities early in the game were wasted, which left a lot of points on the board. At this point, you have to look at the coaching because nothing has changed. No adjustments from last game to this one in Miami. That’s the main story line and it begs the question to ask, Jon Gruden what are you doing at halftime?
The scripted plays on the first couple drives that Gruden devises are flawless. The Raiders have scored on their opening drives every game, which shows a great deal of film study on the part of Gruden. However, someone on his staff needs to remind him that tweaks to a game plan in the second half are necessary. This is now three straight second half collapses from the Raiders. That’s not on the players, that’s on the coaches. The offense easily has it’s way in the first half, but become a shell of themselves in the second, especially in the fourth quarter.
That’s where Gruden’s play calling becomes suspect. On Derek Carr‘s last interception, I was confused as to why they dialed up a pass play. It was in the final few minutes of the game on first down. A run play was the more logical call at that moment to drain the clock. Marshawn Lynch had been trucking the Dolphin’s defense all game. The offense was able to drive the length of the field on that possession because of him. They were poised to score eventually, but clearly Gruden jumped the gun and wanted points immediately. It really shouldn’t be shocking since Gruden is infamous for jumping the gun ever since a certain trade.
When it comes to Derek Carr, I thought he played excellent. He was darting the ball with great power. There was hardly any inaccuracies in this game. The only knock on him for this game are based off three or four bad decisions. The one glaring bad decision was his last interception. A toss up play intended for Martavis Bryant who isn’t known for grabbing jump balls. There wasn’t really any way to fit it to Bryant. It was just a terrible decision. Now this is subjective, but his first interception is up for interpretation. It was a throw for Amari Cooper into triple coverage, which automatically sounds horrendous. However, if you look back at Cooper’s route he actually has a step on them all. If he finishes his route he potentially catches it.
Overall, Carr played well enough for his team to win. I’m just glad he was still able to throw darts even after taking some hard shots. That’s a great sign that his psyche with pressure isn’t wavering. Speaking of pressure, Amari Cooper seems to always shirk away from it when he’s going up against a good corner. He was horrendous this game. From giving up on the route like Randy Moss to dropping the ball like it was butter. This guy may never be able to reach his potential because we hardly ever see improvement.
It was just like the offense overall in this game compared to in week two. Hardly any improvement. It’s the same story, just a different game for the Oakland Raiders. You don’t get credit for playing well for three quarters, that’s not how this league works. With that said, the Oakland Raiders offensive grade is as follows.