Five keys to the Oakland Raiders taking control of the AFC West
Denver is ranked No. 1 vs. the pass but just No. 20 vs. the run.
By Rich Winter
Ask any Denver fan if the defense is as good as last year, and without hesitation, they'll tell you that it's as good or Better.
No it's not!
While Denver has been down-right daunting with their top-ranked pass defense they've been mediocre against the run, ranked 20th in the NFL.
As the Raiders and Broncos take center stage tonight on a Sunday with only a handful of meaningful games, here are my five keys to the Raiders improving to 7-2 heading into the bye week.
5 - Must play penalty free football - The NFL record 23 penalties last week was atrocious and you don't beat good teams like Denver by coughing up yards, field position and shooting yourself in the foot. Don't think coach Jack Del Rio minds penalties and I'm guessing Oakland has more penalties than Denver, BUT, they have to be dialed in mentally and avoid holding and especially silly motion penalties.
4. Raiders defense has to make Denver one dimensional - Not sure where all this offensive confidence is coming from Denver, but the loss of RB, CJ Anderson puts an awful lot of weight on Utah rookie RB, DeVontae Booker. Slow the run down and Denver has to throw the ball. I like Oakland's chances if Trevor Siemian and his 8 TD's and 4 Int's are forced to play catch up.
3. The offensive line must show up - While Oakland boasts one of the best offensive lines in football and Derek Carr is the least sacked QB in the NFL this season, Von Miller is a different animal. Miller, the likely NFL defensive MVP is easily the most feared and disruptive pass rusher in the league and if he's pressuring/bothering Carr, that's trouble for Oakland. Miller lines up in a lot of spots and comes from a lot of different angles, so look for Oakland to pay constant attention to his whereabouts on the field.
2. Derek Carr must play mistake free football - For all the bluster coming from my Denver friends about still holding some kind of mental edge over the Raiders, Oakland beat Denver in Denver last year and should have beaten Denver in Oakland, were it not for a pick-6 authored up on a poor pass from Derek Carr. While the Denver defense has authored up some pretty stiff words about Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree being so-so receivers, and with Aqib Talib sitting today, that pass defense isn't exactly at full strength. I personally don't think Carr fears any CB/S on the Denver defense and he'll take shots. That said, throw and interception or two and the complexion of the game changes completely.
1. Oakland must run the ball - The chink in that Denver defense is they can't stop the run! The Oakland 3-headed monster of Latavius Murray, Washington and Richard won't individually burn Denver but collectively, if they rush for 100 or more yards this game is history.
Win or lose this trip into the spotlight won't be the last for a vastly improved and frighteningly young Raiders squad. At very worse, lose and the team is 6-3, heading into a bye week and winnable stretch of three straight home games (Monday night game vs. Texans in Mexico). Win, and Oakland will be 7-2 and feeling awfully good about itself heading into the bye week where guys can get healthy and work on some things on both sides of the ball.
