Keeping Christian McCaffrey on the sidelines key for Raiders Sunday

The Raiders should be the better overall team on Sunday against the Panthers, but Carolina has one player that can change any game; Christian McCaffrey.

The Las Vegas Raiders have a much improved group of young wide receivers heading into the season, but we may not see much of them with the game plan in Week 1. The Raiders goal on Sunday should be to keep the Panthers offense off the field as much as possible, and the best way to do that will be by feeding star second-year running back, Josh Jacobs.

The Panthers were one of the worst teams in the NFL in terms of stopping the run last year, and the Raiders not only have one of the best offensive lines in the NFL, but one of the best running backs, as well. Jacobs burst onto the scene as a rookie last season, rushing for over 1,100 yards despite missing the final few games with a shoulder injury.

The Panthers defense allowed over 140 yards per game last season, and although the Panthers worked hard in the draft to fix their issues on that side of the ball, the Raiders should still try to run the ball for the majority of the game.

Keep McCaffrey off the field

On the other side of the ball, the Raiders have a solid run defense, but that may not matter with Christian McCaffrey in the backfield. The Panthers entire offense revolves around McCaffrey, and if he is on the field, he has the ability to torch the Raiders defense, whether in the passing game or rushing game.

Last season, McCaffrey rushed for over 1,000 yards, and racked up over 1,000 yards through the air, making him one of the better all-purpose backs in the league. A First Team All-Pro, he is going to be a security blanket for quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, who is making his Panthers debut, and he has to be Public Enemy No. 1 in terms of the Raiders defense.

The game plan for Sunday will likely be simple; hand the ball off to Josh Jacobs over and over again, wearing down the Panthers defense, and running the clock down. The hope is that they could get four to five yards at a time, and most importantly, keep the Panthers offense and Christian McCaffrey off the field.

If the Raiders can win the time of possession battle, there is no reason that they should not be able to win the game, as it is possible we are going to see both teams rely heavily on their running backs in Week 1. Carolina has some solid young wideouts, but McCaffrey is the key here, and Jacobs can help neutralize him Sunday.