Tag: Jermaine Eleumunor

Raiders vs Texans: What we learned from the MNF loss, how to beat Houston and more from the Bye

Bye Week Blues

Every bye week comes and it brings ambitious of catching up on a bunch of articles. Instead, I didn’t finish my separate film article. I’m combining both columns into this week’s preview versus the Texans.

The Bye week always brings a great time to pause and rest as well as reevaluate and reassess. It’s the same thing for the players. Was a week off enough for the Raiders to show fresh legs and adjustments after the Bye Week? Or will we again see an inconsistent Raiders team that is still trying to establish an identity?

Here’s what we learned from the Raiders OL and DL before the Bye Week as well as what we need to do to beat the Texans today.

What Raiders team shows up?

The Raiders got five games to show their heart. They received a bye week to recover from underachieving. How will this team bounce back versus a Houston Texans team with the same number of wins and equal amounts of one-point loses? The Texans aren’t the most talented team but they’re filled with veterans who play hard and young players who are not afraid.

Houston has been floundering since they fired Bill O’Brien a few years ago. His Patriots style and influence ring over the Texans. The Raiders have slowly retooled their roster with Patriots influence since hiring Josh McDaniels.

Houston could be a problem

Lovie Smith picked up the Texans after David Culley was fired after a 4-13 season. Smith is a highly respected coach. He was the defensive coordinator of one NFC Champion Rams and the head coach for the last Bears team that lost the Super Bowl to the Colts. Yet, his legacy as the Texans coach might always be as the one who took over after DeShaun Watson was finally traded.

Vegas needs to stop the bleeding with a win. After this game, the Raiders move on to the easiest part of the schedule. They’ve proven they can play with every team in their division, including the Chiefs.

However, they still need to prove they can play a full four quarters of great football through all three phases of the game. That excuse has been stale for Raiders fans who have watched this for the better part of 20 years. Many great players wore Silver and Black but never sniffed postseason success. Don’t let this team continue disappointing with second half collapses or slow starts.

The Raiders should win this game but the Texans have played close in all their games. Vegas holds more talent top to bottom but they have yet to execute a complete four quarters. At home, the Silver and Black must set the tone by dominating from play one.

All eyes on the offensive line

The Raiders offensive line pushed their double teams better versus the Chiefs. That’s also why running back Josh Jacobs found success running between the tackles.

Vegas decided to move Alex Bars from starting left guard to starting right guard. Bars is still playing too high and getting beat with speed but he showed his size and strength in the run game versus the Chiefs.

Dylan Parham showed he could anchor the left side, even though he did take some lumps. Parham has started at three different positions as a rookie drafted in the third round. That’s incredible four the 6-3 interior linemen out of Memphis.

Kolton Miller had his best game of the season versus the Chiefs, according to PFF. Andre James also looked closer to his regular and consistent form.

It feels like the Raiders are finally steadying the ship at the offensive line. They need to improve their blitz pickup and they do take lumps versus speed in the pass and they struggle getting up to good backers. I’d like to see John Simpson back in the guard rotation as well as an upgrade at right tackle so Eleumunor can move inside to guard again.

Building on a big game

Vegas’ offensive line rotation seems to be finally settling down but that could all change after the Bye Week too. I still don’t think Bars is a starting guard on a playoff team, nor do I believe Jermaine Eluemunor is a starting right tackle for a good team. However, both looked competent and could get better as the season goes on. At the very least, this group has gotten better.

Moving onto the Texans, Vegas will need to keep building on their momentum with a solid effort from their offensive tackles. They helped Jacobs crack over 150 rushing yards with a 7 yards-per-carry average. QB Derek Carr was only sacked twice, not including that Chris Jones strip-sack that got reversed due to roughing the passer.

This week they’ll see one-time Raider Maliek Collins as well as run stopper Roy Lopez. Neither are great like Jeffrey Simmons or Chris Jones who the Raiders already faced, but both are formidable vets with defined roles in the defense.

On the edge, the Texans have enough length and athleticism to give the Raiders some problems. Jerry Hughes is having a resurgence with four sacks already this year. Former Seahawks edge Rasheem Green and former Rams edge Ogbonnia Okornokwo have looked good since joining the Texan’s rotation this year. The Silver and Black need a solid outing from their tackles.

The defensive line still needs help

Again, Maxx Crosby carried the front four with two sacks. Clelin Ferrell did some things to help Crosby but he still has not gotten a sack. Chandler Jones keeps finding himself in the play but he does not have the same explosiveness to make the play like a few years ago. The Raiders again find themselves in the bottom of the league for sacks.

Andrew Billings continued to look good in the interior but he’s limited as a pass rusher. The Raiders relied on Bilal Nichols again at defensive tackle. He’s a decent pass rusher but can get pushed in the run game. John Hankins was also missing from the center of the Raiders run defense.

Despite all the close games Vegas has played this year, they have not found a core-four defensive line players to finish games and win big spots. They still have to pick and choose between players who are solid against the run vs players who can rush the passer. Houston is in the middle of the pack for sacks allowed. The Texans are also in the bottom of the league for rushing yards. This is a matchup the defensive line can win in passing and running situations.

Give the ball to Jacobs

Back to the Patriots influence. The Raiders have been cute with their running back rotation all year. New England loves playing multiple backs and packages. It’s time to give Josh Jacobs the ball.

Jacobs has been the Raiders most consistent threat on offense. What the former Alabama running back lacks in size and speed, he makes up for it with effort and elusiveness. We’d all like to see him pull away a little more but he’s not afraid to finish runs. Jacobs’ cuts look way stronger. He is also being smarter about when to go down and protect his body.

Vegas just needs to give him the damn ball. Jacobs carved up the Chiefs and Broncos. The offense is different when they play with short third downs thanks to Jacobs. Darren Waller is not playing so the Raiders need an extra boost from Jacobs, particularly in the red zone.

Houston’s defense is discipline but they are not particularly strong against the run. The Texans allowed the 6th most rushing yard and they rank in the middle of pack for rushing touchdowns allowed. This should be a solid game for Jacobs and the rushing attack to eat again.

Let Davante Adams take out his frustration

We all saw the video where Adams knocked over a college student on his first day working as a freelance photographer. Adams apologized immediately after, but he still caught a misdemeanor charge and civil lawsuit from the individual he pushed.

It’s hard to blame Adams since he always says and does the right thing. Adams has been noticeably frustrated since coming to the Raiders. The team is 1-5 and his targets have gone up and down like the team’s success.

Still, the receiver registered 124 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns on only three receptions. Adams has always been a game changer so that play-making ability should not come as a surprise.

Vegas needs to again find ways to get Adams the ball early and often versus Houston. They are going to need his presence especially in the red zone since Waller is out again. The Silver and Black struggle in the red zone but hopefully Adams can make a few big plays to help them avoid that strife.

Houston is a middle of the pack pass defense. A big game from Adams should help him put the Kansas City situation behind him. It should also help the Raiders bury the Texans in an insurmountable lead.

It’s not about the Texans

The Raiders need to show a sense of urgency if they want to will themselves into the playoffs. Their chances of making the postseason decreased by a few points even though they did not play last week. They can easily blow out this AFC foe at home off talent alone.

A big win should give this team some confidence and momentum headed into an easy part of the schedule. It should also prove this team still believes in their head coach Josh McDaniels and their QB Derek Carr.

Nonetheless, they could also fall into a defensive battle with the Texans. That’s especially true if Vegas struggles stopping the run or allows big plays in the passing game due to miscues. This is the game for the Raiders to really showcase what they’re capable of for four quarters.

Bury the distractions

We’re all excited about Magic Johnson possibly joining the Raiders ownership. He was an L.A. Raiders fan back in the day and he helped the Lakers, Dodgers, Sparks and LAFC win championships in various roles. Johnson would bring diversity, connections and experience to the Raiders if the team sold a minority stake to him.

There’s been trade rumors about the Raiders exploring deals to bring back Nelson Agholor too. Rumors also surfaced that the team was shopping John Abram and Clelin Ferrell. It makes sense given neither lived up to their high draft status. However, what can you actually get for them and who are you going to play that is better?

None of that off-field conversation matters this season. Vegas will always be surrounded by talk and rumors. The Raiders need to forget all that to dig themselves out of a hole in the AFC West. That starts with just winning now, baby!

Raiders vs Chiefs Preview 2022: How Vegas can get their second win of the season

By Tuesday morning, the Raiders will have played each of their AFC West division foes. Vegas also played an NFC playoff team (Arizona Cardinals) and an AFC Playoff team (Tennessee Titans) from a year ago already this season. Neither look as good as last year, but both of those losses came down to the final series.

In scouting, they say it takes about five games to get a good baseline sense of a player. The Raiders will play their fifth game of the season versus the Chiefs. This is the game where the Raiders bring everything together. We should finally have a sense of the Raiders’ identity and expectations after Week 5.

Last year, three playoffs teams started at 1-3. Vegas still has a lot to prove before they can comfortably say they will keep that trend going this year. Regardless, the season isn’t over yet for the Silver and Black.

Familiar faces

Kansas City has been the king of the AFC West and the most consistent AFC contender since they rolled out Pat Mahomes as their starting quarterback. This year is no different as they sit at 3-1 with wins over the Chargers, Cardinals and Buccaneers. Their lone loss came to an underachieving Indianapolis Colts team.

The Chiefs don’t appear as explosive without Tyreek Hill at receiver. However, they’ve still got speed on the outside with Mecole Hardman, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valde-Scanting. Kansas City also still has shifty and versatile running backs with Clyde Edwards-Halaire, Jerick McKinnon and Isiah Pacheco. Plus, tight end Travis Kelce always gives the Raiders Problems. Patrick Mahomes also always tears up the Silver and Black.

Retooled Defense

Defensively, this group is led by Chris Jones. They revamped the safeties adding Justin Reid and rolling with Juan Thornhill full-time. The rest of the secondary are a mix of veterans and young guys, per usual. This is an Andy Reid formula the Raiders should know well. Kansas City wants to bend but not break as well as force enough pressure and turnovers to help their offense stay on the field.

A lot riding on Week 5

Vegas enters this game after two poor performances versus the Chiefs last year. They gave up 40 points and failed to score more than 14 points. The Raiders showed some promise the year before, beating the Chiefs in Arrowhead and nearly beating them in Vegas earlier in 2020.

Nonetheless, we already learned through four games this is not the same Raiders team as last year. In this case, that benefits Vegas. Last year’s team made progress by making the playoffs but they made no progress in beating the Chiefs. This year’s team can show it’s not afraid of the AFC West’s big dog.

The point is, we’ll have a good sense of what this Raiders team is capable of after they play the Chiefs. We’ve been waiting for this team to put together four quarters of winning football through all three facets of the game. They’ll need to do that this week versus the Chiefs just to keep themselves from getting blown out.

On one hand, a win puts them right back at 2-1 in the division. Otherwise, a loss puts them at 1-2 in the division and 1-4 overall. That is not a great spot headed into the Bye Week but this team should come out stronger in Week 6.

Either way, the Raiders will have some time to make some adjustments and personnel moves after the Chiefs game via their Bye. This game in Kansas City will really be the difference between the Raiders riding momentum or licking their wounds during the off week.

What do the Raiders need to do to beat the Chiefs? Here’s some keys to walkaway with a huge road upset.

Apply pressure

First off, Vegas has no chance if they let Patrick Mahomes get comfortable. The Raiders need to find ways to pressure, hurry and sack the Chiefs’ QB. They also need to stay discipline with their pass rushing lanes. Mahomes can gash up the Raiders like Wilson and Murray, except for he has a much bigger and more active arm that can make the Raiders pay. That’s d-line 101.

Play disciplined in coverage

Denzel Perryman made his presence felt in the last game versus the run. There’s a chance he plays again Monday. The Raiders will need him to not be a liability in coverage as they have speed throughout the lineup.

Jayvon Brown is solid in coverage, even if he’s not as physical as Perryman. However, Brown is expected to miss the game with a hamstring injury. That puts more pressure on Perryman in coverage. Not to mention, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce already has over 300 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns.

The Vegas defensive backs have made plays the past few weeks, even if they’ve been over-matched. Despite injuries, they’ve found big plays from Duron Harmon and Amik Robertson. Nate Hobbs has continued to look great. Rock Ya-Sin made some plays and even Johnathan Abram looks better this season. Tre’von Moehrig came back and looked improved. He gives the group a little more bulk.

This group will get tested by Kelce’s size, the speed on the outside and the shiftiness out of the backfield. The Raiders defensive backs can’t afford any lapses in coverage or huge penalties. They’ve got to be solid with their tackling too. Kansas City’s receivers aren’t playing too well but the Raiders can’t be the group that helps them find their rhythm.

Please send Crosby some help

Vegas’ x-factor is their defensive line. Andrew Billings got a little bit more push in the passing game. Johnathan Hankins looked better too. Some of that could be on the Broncos’ guards. Clelin Ferrell was effective setting everyone up with his stunts. Chandler Jones’ showed up a little bit even if he lost contain a few times. Jones still needs to get home with that big pay check. Hobbs registered a sack as a blitzer.

Obviously, Maxx Crosby was a beast again with two sacks. He’s playing with more control and that shows up with his tackle for losses and impact in the run game. Crosby can’t do it alone and that’s why eyes will be on Ferrell and Jones to find ways to be effective. He might even miss this game due to the birth of his baby. This has to be the week someone else gets a sack. No one besides Hobbs or Crosby has a sack this season.

Kansas City’s offensive line is playing better than year’s past. The Raiders defensive line won’t have an obvious weak link to attack. Yet, we know we can’t beat Mahomes without applying pressure. Vegas defensive line needs someone to step up and make a play. Let’s see Croby even lineup as a DT in obvious passing situations.

This one’s gotta mean more for Carr

Derek Carr lost his first AFC West dual to the Chargers. He threw some picks that cost them. Last week, the team edged out the Broncos but Russell Wilson got the best of him statistically. Carr’s gotta have a marquee performance to show he belongs as a face of a franchise in the AFC West.

It was great to see Carr take off and run last week. It gave the Raiders an added element to their offense. People forget Derek is not slow. The Chiefs are better in the interior than the Broncos, which might make that a harder outlet this week.

Overall, Carr and company need to be better in the red zone. There’s no reason for them to be one of the worst teams in the red zone when they have Davante Adams. They found ways to get Adams the ball last week but this week Carr needs to find him in the red zone. Darren Waller isn’t a bad second red zone target either.

Keep giving it to Jacobs

Josh Jacobs is running as hard as I’ve ever seen him run in Silver and Black. That manifested a career game last week versus the Broncos. Vegas needs to keep him involved early and often.

Again, Jones will be the biggest foe to this strategy. The Raiders guards have been up and down at best so Jones might be in the backfield a lot for the Chiefs. Vegas can try and use that aggressiveness against him by sprinkling in draws and screens for Jacobs. This offense needs to keep Jacobs going so Carr gets easier reads.

A few sprinkles of Zamir White as well as end around to Adams or other gimmicks don’t hurt. Vegas needs to not only feed Jacobs but not look away if he struggles. He got better as the game went on last week. It’s nice to see him, knock on wood, not deal with any lingering injuries through almost a quarter of the season. Jacobs also could be big in helping this team turnaround it’s red zone woes.

Josh is a good receiving threat out of the backfield. His offensive line needs generate some push for him to be effective in red zone though.

Addressing the biggest red flag

The Raiders offensive line improved last week with starting center Andre James returning to the lineup. Dylan Parham continues to prove he can play anywhere in the interior. Both can improve in blitz pickup and double team timing but that will come together as they get more acclimated to playing together.

Vegas still has some liabilities at left guard and right tackle. Jones’ speed, hands and get off worry me against Alex Bars. I hope John Simpson gets another chance to prove himself. Whatever he did to fall out of the rotation, the Raiders may need him this week. He’s a bit quicker than Bars, he does better at getting up to linebacker and he is younger. Simpson looked solid and improved from last year in the first two games when he started.

Chiefs edges Frank Clark and Carlos Dunlap aren’t as great as a few years but they still could give Kolton Miller some competition. Kansas City is also starting rookie defensive end George Karlaftis. None of them have been very good this year but they could be a mismatch versus Jermaine Eluemunor who struggles with speed. His backup Thayer Munford struggles with speed and leverage which might not help either.

This Raiders offensive line has the power to be a liability or a strength versus the Chiefs. They need individual players to step up and win their battles. The Vegas offensive line also needs to come together as a cohesive unit. That should get easier as the rotation settles and they hopefully get another win. Otherwise, some changes could be made in the bye week.

All eyes on Josh

Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels started his press conference by saying the Raiders have a big challenge this week. It’s the truth.

After beating his former team and earning his first win as the Raiders head coach, McDaniels talked about how his team is figuring out how to win after those first three tough losses. That’s a hard pill to swallow for a veteran team. This will be the real test to see if McDaniels can really build a winning culture fast.

McDaniels’ gotta prove his offense can go toe-to-toe with Andy Reid’s explosive offense. The last Raiders coaches weren’t able to make the adjustments to avoid blowouts, can McDaniels? This group has far more weapons so the pressure is on McDaniels to help this offense score some points. He can really make a statement with a win over their toughest division opponent in Week 5.

Lessons from the Week 3 Trenches

The Raiders did a much better job in the running game. Both Brandon Bolden and Josh Jacobs averaged over five yards per carry. You can’t ask for much more from your backs. Not their fault the gameplan got away from that.

Pass protection looked better except when it did not. The group gave up a sack and allowed the Titans to apply pressure in some tough spots.

For reasons unknown, John Simpson did not find his way onto the field for the offense in Week 3. Simpson started at left guard the first two games. I was excited to see him build on an improved performance from Week Two.

On defense, Maxx Crosby was again the only player who consistently found his way to disrupt the backfield. Crosby wasn’t perfect, again whiffing on some potential sacks and getting caught up field versus the run. However, he got a sack and made plays in the passing lanes. That’s all you can ask for.

Overall, the group could’ve did more to disrupt Titans QB Ryan Tannehill as he completed over 66 percent of his passes. Some of that is on the secondary though too. They held Derrick Henry to less than 100 yards and only a touchdown. Henry did make some plays but you can’t ask for more than that, even if he averaged over four yards a carry. Adding Denzel Perryman back into the lineup should help the Raiders against the run.

Let’s jump more into the weeds from the All-22.

Interior line improved

Vegas did a better job getting push in the run game and staying on their double-teams. Part of that comes from rolling with Jermaine Eleumunor at guard over Lester Cotton. They also started Alex Bars over John Simpson. Both added some bulk to help contain Jeffrey Simmons.

Dylan Parham also looked better in his second start. His anchor improved and he looked better at the point of attack. However, the group did not do as great of a job getting up to linebacker. They also got caught slipping a few times recognizing stunts in pass pro. All of them need to do better at keeping their heads up and shoulders square to recognize stunts.

Individually, both Eluemunor and Bars both struggled with speed. Eluemunor got caught off balanced and stopping his feet. Bars also got caught leaning and stopping his feet versus strong hands. The inside offensive line is still a mess but it looked better verus the Titans.

Right tackle is still an issue

Rookie Thayer Munford started at right tackle. He didn’t play too bad considering he’s seventh round pick. His feet are good and he has the size and length to play in the league.

Unfortunately, he has not shown the pad level or punch timing necessary versus elite edges. Luckily, the Titans do not feature an elite edge rusher. Munford did get better in this game with more consistent playing time, which is a good sign.

Moving forward, the Raiders still need to figure out a long-term solution at right tackle for this season. Eluemunor looked better at guard because he does not have to worry about speed as much. However, there may be temptation to move him back to right tackle. That’s especially true if center Andre James returns. Then, the Raiders can utilize Parham at guard again, which could push Eluemunor back to tackle. Regardless, Eluemunor and Munford both leave a lot to be desired at the right tackle spot.

The DTs improved

Defensively, the Raiders tackles improved versus the run. Defensive tackles John Hankins and Andrew Billings found ways to push the pocket and eat up double-teams. Hankins got better in the second half when he could key in more on the run. Both could play with a little more leverage and lean to rush the passer. They did find ways to impact the passing lanes too.

Currently, the Raiders find themselves in scenarios where they must prioritize the best pass rushers or run stuffers.

That’s where Bilal Nichols, Malcolm Butler and Bilal Nichols come in. They’re supposed to be the players that provide the balance. None of them have been consistently effective against the run or pass.

Sliding Crosby or Clelin Ferrell inside could help them get more pass rush from the interior, while they rely on the size of Hankins and Billings to stuff the run. However, you can’t always rotate in the perfect package versus every situation. The Raiders still need to find the four player combination that consistently brings pressure and stops the run.

Crosby needs help on the edge

On that note, Maxx Crosby needs help ASAP. Chandler Jones should have dominated this game as the Titans were down their best tackle. Jones dominated Tennessee last season. He had a couple of good reps and still finds himself in the right position.

It could be age or a lingering injury but Jones has not found a way to bring consistent heat off the edge. He is not even seeing the same level of attention in Vegas as he was in Arizona due to Crosby’s play. Jones is getting paid a lot to not get home to the quarterback.

Ferrell looks better getting off the ball and playing with his hands but he still lacks the explosiveness and bend off the edge. He also looks uncomfortable in coverage. Ferrell has not showed much more than Jones when he has had the opportunity to step-in at edge.

Whether it’s Ferrell or Jones, Crosby needs help. Mad Maxx is the Raiders most consistent defensive player but he can’t be the only one if the Raiders are going to dig themselves out of an 0-3 hole.