Containment continues to be a sore spot for the Las Vegas Raiders defense.
And getting torched by rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders in 24-10 Week 12 home loss was just another example of exactly that. Breaking contain, evading a pass rusher, and extending a play resulted in the Cleveland Browns neophyte gunslinger dropping a 52-yard dime against the Silver & Black last Sunday.
It was a first-quarter play that saw Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham dial up pressure and defensive end Tyree Wilson broke through untouched, only for Sanders to sprint right and heave the ball to streaking wide receiver Isaiah Bond before both pass rusher Maxx Crosby and linebacker Devin White could get to him.
Giving that kind of explosive play up to a rookie quarterback is one thing. Extending the play to Bond and then a 39-yard pass to wideout Jerry Jeudy were the two downfield explosive plays from Sanders. The other was a screen pass that fellow rookie Dylan Sampson housed from 66-yards out when the fleet-footed running back sliced through the Raiders defense like a hot knife through butter in the fourth quarter.
Up next for Las Vegas: Containing familiar nemesis Justin Herbert. The Los Angeles Chargers quarterback who has a penchant for explosive plays (passes over 20 yards).
Herbert and the Bolts’ most recent outing was not flattering — at all.
The team limped into a much-needed bye week off a lopsided 35-6 defeat at the hands of the Jacksonville Jaguars. It was a game that saw Herbert go 10 of 18 for a paltry 81 yards with no touchdowns, one interception, while getting sacked twice.
Coming of a hiatus, expect the Chargers to bring electricity to SoFi Stadium today when they host the Raiders. And Graham is all too aware of what his defense needs to do. As evidenced by Las Vegas’ 20-9 loss to Los Angeles back in Week 2 in Allegiant Stadium.
“Got to eliminate the big plays, the explosives. Got to do a good job of corralling the quarterback. They got a good, solid run game, but they passed the ball a little bit more than expected,” Graham said recounting the previous matchup. “But, I mean, every team that’s played them has said that after their seven wins. The quarterback is really good. We got to do a good job of disguising and just got to do a better job of getting off the field on third down. I think they were 4-for-10.”
“We didn’t force enough third downs, so that’s on me,” Graham added.
A disciplined effort is vital for Graham’s defense is going to be vital against Herbert and Greg Roman’s Chargers offense. Keeping contain and not letting Herbert evade pressure by moving the pocket and dropping dimes is easier said than done. But it must happen.
Because the damage Herbert can do with his arms and legs is exponentially more detrimental than what Sanders can post as a rookie.
Of course, complementary football for Pete Carroll’s Raiders football team is critical, too. We’ll see if a sudden change at offensive coordinator — Greg Olson in for Chip Kelly — brings critical balance to the Raiders offense and sustained drives that end in points — be it field goals or end zone visits — can help the Silver & Black quell the Bolts.
Quotes of Note:
“I’m big on this. In terms of leadership, Maxx Crosby is the leader of the defense. Maxx is never going to quit. Coaches and players, we all follow that lead to a degree. So, again, I know people think that’s what they’re going to do, but I mean, nobody would do that. Nobody I’ve ever coached would do that. Do we make mistakes? Yes. Do we have bad plays? Yes. But nobody’s going to do that. And again, I can’t speak for other places or other teams and stuff like that, but nobody’s going to do that. So, I mean, it’s expected of them to do their job, and that’s what we have to do. I mean, there’s only 17 opportunities you get. There’s 365 days, 366 on a leap year, where you get a chance. Most of those days you’re a professional football player and on Sunday’s, you get to play football, so got to make the most of it.”
—Las Vegas Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham when asked about the defense continuing to answer the call and keep the team in the game.
“Yeah, I think it’s important in any system, and certainly coming from Seattle, probably nobody ran it better than the Seahawks during their 10-year run there with Marshawn Lynch, who we had a chance to have here in Vegas and Oakland. So, I’ve always believed in that as well. I think when you look across the league, the successful teams are the teams that run the ball when they want to run it, not just to run it to maintain balance, but we’ve got to get in the mindset of when we want to run the football, we’ll run the football, no matter what the situation or who we’re playing. So, it just helps you. A lot of people talk about balance, and certainly we’re looking for balance in the fourth quarter, but we just got to get better at that part of what we’re doing.”
—Las Vegas Raiders interim offensive coordinator Greg Olson when asked how important it is to run the ball over the course of the team’s remaining games.
Sunday’s clash marks the 133rd meeting between the Raiders and Chargers. The Silver & Black leads the overall series 69-61-2 (68-61-2 in regular season action; 1-0 in postseason play). However, it’s the Bolts that ride a three-game win streak heading into the Week 13 tilt. L.A. dropped Las Vegas 20-9 in Week 2 thanks in large part to a trio of Geno Smith interceptions. The Raiders’ last win in the series was the 63-21 Thursday night football walloping that resulted in Brandon Stately being dismissed as head coach back in 2023.
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