Game Balls: Raiders vs Lions
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The Oakland Raiders’ Tame The Detroit Lions In Their Week 9 match-up in the Black Hole on Sunday.
Derek Carr has had his detractors this season. Some feel he isn’t the answer and wants more out of the Raiders quarterback. Others see progress and feel he is the right person to lead the Silver and Black this season and beyond.
All of this considered, Raider Nation went to bed and woke up pretty happy Monday. Carr led the Raiders downfield and threw a perfect ball to rookie wide receiver Hunter Renfrow to give the Raiders a 7 point lead. That drive eventually sealed the win. Carr was spectacular, and once again, rookie running back Josh Jacobs showed why he should be the front runner for NFL Rookie of the Year.
Carr had a great statistical game (20/31/289/2 TD’s), getting the ball out quickly to his receivers and tight ends while showing toughness and grit leading the Raider offense in crunch time. Jacobs, Carr, Renfrow, and a balanced offensive attack that controlled the clock (something I talked about in the game preview I wrote about last week) played a pivotal role in contributing to the Raiders’ 31-24 win to the Lions.
Overall, the Raiders played a damn good game on Sunday. It once again showed that they are a team that will be competing for a Wild Card spot this year if they can stay healthy, play bend-don’t-break defense, and limit mistakes and turnovers.
Now it is time to honor the players I thought balled out and give out the ” Raiders vs Packers Game Balls.”
Josh Jacobs:
I should keep Josh Jacobs as a regular getting a game ball. Jacobs earns his fifth this season, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. Jacobs set the tone early for the Raiders and finished with 120 yards on the ground on 28 carries and two touchdowns. Jacobs once again showed the vision, patience, agility, and ability to cut back and run by Lions defenders. He set the tone early in the game, and Jon Gruden kept feeding him the ball early and often, forcing the Lions to play the Raiders balanced, which is precisely how Gruden wants opponents to do and will not the offense even more difficult to defend.
Derek Carr:
Carr is a polarizing figure for Raiders fans. But overall, he has had a very good season in year two of Gruden’s offense. With flashy, young quarterbacks like Kyler Murray and Patrick Mahomes, some feel the Raiders needed to move in a different direction and away from Carr, but I disagree. Gruden’s offense takes at least two years to get comfortable and another year or two to master.
Carr has shown that he has a firm grasp of what Gruden wants to do on offense, and the past few weeks (the fumble against Green Bay excluded) have only made my belief that Carr is the guy even stronger.
He has played through a broken back, a horrible offensive line, and a lack of weapons on offense in the past, and the Raiders record showed it. He has taken the blame, been a stand-up guy, a leader in the locker room, and has never blinked in times of peril. Now that he has weapons, an offensive line that protects him, and a playbook that showcases his talents, Carr is rewarding the Raiders’ belief in him. He did it once again on Sunday and deserved a game ball.
The Raiders Defense:
The Raiders defense came up big in the final seconds against the Lions, right when they needed to. Darryl Worley had a one-handed interception in the endzone that was huge (taking points off the board). Karl Joseph made a huge play to end the game, breaking up a potential touchdown pass on fourth down, and Tahir Whitehead had seven tackles against his former team.
But as a whole, they did an excellent job doing what they needed to do: not give up too many big plays through the air and limit the Lions rushing attack (holding them to 91 total rushing yards). Overall, there is room for improvement by this unit, but last week they did what they needed to do.
The Raiders take on the Chargers this Thursday at 5 pm on Fox. If you want a place to watch the game, eat and have a good time, head to Al’s Garage in Summerlin. There are multiple televisions to watch all the games going on Thursday night. Al’s has “Happy Hour” extended throughout the game. Al’s Garage is located at 11760 W. Charleston Boulevard, Las Vegas, Nevada 89135.
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Joe Arrigo
Joe is the Co-Founder of Franchise Sports Media, former Los Angels sports talk host & producer, has covered Las Vegas sports for over five years and co-hosts The Q&A Raiders Podcast.
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