In the NFL, a team is only as good as its quarterback. And that’s why the Oakland Raiders decided to trade away Khalil Mack for a haul of draft picks and players. Now, they’re stuck with Derek Carr.
The jon gruden is a man who was hired to help the Raiders rebuild their team. He has been ignoring the issue as of late, which has caused serious problems for the team.
All seemed good in the land of Derek Carr and the Las Vegas Raiders until their Week 4 defeat to Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers.
They started out with a 3-0 record, defeating the Baltimore Ravens, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Miami Dolphins, respectively. Tua Tagovailoa, the Dolphins’ starting quarterback, was out. However, three excellent victories against three clubs that were all in the playoff fight last year were still remarkable.
The Raiders are still undefeated at 3-1. During their first defeat, though, one of their greatest offseason bets began to show through.
The Raiders’ offensive line is starting to show signs of wear and tear.
People don’t realize how amazing this is… That’s a jungle cat in a 97 jersey, not a human.
With a 320-pound Right Tackle in his way, Joey Bosa cleared 15 yards in under three seconds. It’s difficult to understand his capacity to close distances. pic.twitter.com/fVK83dk6As
October 5, 2021 — Rich Ohrnberger (@ohrnberger)
The Raiders’ lack of a reliable starting offensive line was emphasized during their defeat to the Rams. Carr was sacked four times by the Chargers, who averaged 3.8 yards per run.
Carr was only sacked three times in each of his games against the Ravens and Dolphins, and twice against the Steelers. Carr had his finest game of the season thus far against Pittsburgh, thanks to a clean pocket for the most of the game (382 passing yards, two touchdowns, 126.2 passer rating).
As Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk points out, the Raiders are having trouble scoring early in games, which may be linked to an inconsistent offensive line.
So far this season, the Raiders have scored three offensive points in the first quarter, and a better offensive line may help the Raiders get off to a quicker start. The line will continue to be a focus of emphasis in Las Vegas, as Gruden said that they “had to pass protect better early in games” in addition to getting the run game going.
Pro Football Talk’s Josh Alper
This summer, the Raiders took a chance with their offensive line.
This summer, the Raiders made three offensive line trades:
C Rodney Hudson Gets a 7 for Arizona’s 3rd place finish.
Gabe Jackson is a guard with Seattle’s 5th team.
Trent Brown, OT, and a 2022 7 for the New England Patriots’ 2022 5
March 18, 2021 — Field Yates (@FieldYates)
The Raiders’ approach to their offensive line has been one of the strangest NFL stories to watch since the summer. For a long time, Las Vegas has had a powerful offensive line. However, for unexplained reasons, they opted to totally overhaul the unit over the summer.
Pro Bowl center Rodney Hudson, starting right guard Gabe Jackson, and right tackle Trent Brown were all traded by the Raiders to the Arizona Cardinals, Seattle Seahawks, and New England Patriots, respectively.
It was a total reorganization of the position, with just a few matching movements. In the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft, the Raiders selected Alabama OT/OG Alex Leatherwood. One rookie, on the other hand, will not be able to replace the hole left by three starting-caliber veterans.
The Raiders’ offensive line makeover was a risky move that raised questions about the team’s management. The defeat against the Rams indicates that the team’s deteriorating offensive line is beginning to catch up to them.
Jon Gruden, the team’s head coach, is unconcerned (yet)
Los Angeles Chargers defensive tackle Raiders quarterback Derek Carr is sacked by Jerry Tillery | Terry Pierson/The Press-Enterprise via Getty Images
Despite the Raiders’ poor performance against the Chargers, head coach Jon Gruden isn’t panicking just yet.
“We have a lot of linemen. “We truly do,” Gruden said. “We had a few successful excursions.” We will not press the panic button. We must continue to coach. We need to keep growing these people, and medication is sometimes exactly what we need. Even if we don’t enjoy the flavor, we all need a taste of that medication.”
For what it’s worth, the Raiders are without their expected starting guards, so don’t get too excited just yet. However, if the club has another couple of high-sack games, the line may see some adjustments. In the great scheme of things, keeping Carr upright is priority number one.
Pro Football Reference provided all stats.
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