Detroit Lions at Oakland Raiders: 3 players to watch in Week 9

Josh Jacobs

Josh Jacobs was only given 18 touches last week, but the gameplan favored more passing, so it was not unexpected. This week they are facing a Lions defense that has struggled a ton against the run and should be a perfect match up for Jacobs.

Before last week, Detroit had allowed their first six opponents to rush for over 100 yards and are allowing 4.7 yards per rush.

The Raiders abandoned their ball control offensive mindset last week, and it cost them. As we said, it made sense to exploit the Texans’ weak secondary, but they lost the time of possession battle by eleven minutes. And by the end of the game as their own defense was gassed and unable to hold the lead.

The same could happen this week with Matthew Stafford and this Detroit passing game that is currently playing at a high level. Therefore they need to get back to establishing the run and chewing up the clock on their scoring drives to keep the defense off the field. Jacobs is the key to this style of play, so if he plays the well, the Raiders have a great chance.