Oakland Raiders Week 5 X-Factors against the Chicago Bears

Foster Moreau

Last week was a bit of a breakout game for the rookie tight end, as he was able to score his first career touchdown. Moreau has a great opportunity to build upon his resume this Sunday by playing the role of Derek Carr‘s security blanket.

With the offense facing such an effective pass rush, expect Oakland’s game plan to mimic week one’s and include a lot of check-down passes. The combination of the game plan and the team’s lack of depth at wide receiver means more opportunities for the Silver and Black’s tight ends. Darren Waller won’t be enough, so the Raiders need the LSU product to step up and become a factor in the passing game.

When Moreau isn’t running routes, he still needs to be a difference maker when the team wants to throw the ball. In order to slow down the Bears pass rush, the Raiders offensive line will need help from players outside of the unit, and the tight end was known for his blocking in college. Expect Moreau to help in pass protection with chip blocks, and occasionally play the role of a sixth offensive lineman.

The rookie’s pass blocking has been up and down this year. In two games he didn’t allow a single pressure and in the other two, he surrendered a total of three. All of this is a lot of responsibility to put on a player who only has four games under his belt, but a good performance will be another step towards making Moreau a household name.