In week five the Las Vegas Raiders entered Mile High Stadium in Denver hoping to continue last week’s momentum to a winning record. Though it started well for the Raiders with 10 quick points to start the game, the Denver Broncos scored 34 unanswered points to win. Here are the biggest takeaways from the Raiders’ disastrous loss to the Broncos.
Raiders Disastrous Week 5 Loss Takeaways
Mistakes and Penalties
One of the silver linings of this disappointing start to the season for the Raiders has been their lack of penalties and overall lack of mistakes compared to the last 20 years. This loss to the Broncos was more like the Raiders of the past featuring 11 penalties for well over 100 yards. Missed tackles and missed assignments plagued the defense. Even though the Raiders had more passing yards, rushing yards, and first downs, the constant penalties killed the momentum putting their defense in tough spots. An atrocious throw from Gardner Minshew that should have resulted in another Brock Bowers touchdown instead went for a Patrick Surtain 100-yard pick-six. Many analysts and commentators noted that this was the momentum shift from which the Raiders failed to rebound. From then on the Broncos went on to score 34 unanswered points.
Rookie growing pains, mistakes, and penalties from players like DJ Glaze or Jackson Powers-Johnson are to be expected to an extent. But veterans like Kolton Miller, Jakobi Meyers, or Jack Jones with penalties make it harder to win. Head Coach Antonio Pierce prides himself on sure tackling, but that was also a problem for the Raider defense on Sunday against the Broncos. Apart from the first quarter, the Raiders played terribly in every phase of the game. Even the punt team had trouble covering and gave up meaningful return yardage. As of week five the Raiders’ have zero consistency in the way they play and need to make drastic changes to have a semblance of making the playoffs.
No Defensive Consistency
Coming into the season the Raider defense only got better on paper in terms of acquisitions and returning players. The defense was supposed to be the reliable part of this Raider team that would keep the offense in games and opponents off the scoreboard. These past five weeks of football have shown that this defense led by Patrick Graham is struggling to do what they did last year. Against the Panthers and Broncos, this Raider defense struggled against offenses they were supposed to get the better of. The Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix came into this game leading an inconsistent offense with one passing touchdown and four interceptions. Nix left week 5 with two touchdowns no turnovers and a big win over the Raiders.
The Raider defense played well enough to win for the first quarter and most of the second quarter. After that, it was all downhill. Maxx Crosby played great in his return and his high ankle sprain didn’t stop him from getting two sacks and three tackles. Robert Spillane, Christian Wilkins, and Jakorian Bennett are among other players who have been consistent in this inconsistent defense so far. Unfortunately, a devastating foot injury against the Broncos puts star defensive tackle Christian Wilkins out for a large portion of the season after undergoing surgery after the game. Five weeks into the season, it’s still hard to get a read on how good the Raider defense can be going forward, but unfortunate injuries don’t help. Adding new players and keeping the starting 11 almost identical to last year didn’t make them better from what was seen. However, given their track record, they can improve going forward and fix what went wrong against the Broncos. The same might not be said about the offense.
Offensive Overhaul Needed
Heading into week five the main storylines for the Raiders’ offense included their challenge against a stout Broncos defense and Davante Adams‘ confirmed desire to be traded. Despite the outside media distraction that comes with a star player wanting to leave at the beginning of the season, the Raider offense started admirably against the Broncos. But if this game against this strong Denver defense was a test, the Raiders failed miserably. One atrocious overthrow and 100-yard pick-six later the offense completely imploded. They still somehow outdid the Broncos in the most offensive statistics like yardage or first downs and lost the game anyway. The difference makers were turnovers, penalties, and constantly putting their defense in tough positions.
As a whole, this season is starting to feel like the definition of insanity. The Raider offense is doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results. The offense has probably played six good quarters out of the five games they’ve played this season if that. Antonio Pierce and Luke Getsy sound like broken records on how they need to get the run game going. They couldn’t build off a strong outing last week against the Browns and did much worse than the stats say on paper. Alexander Mattison had high expectations after last week’s great performance but looked much like his predecessor Zamir White. This indicates that the Raiders system that Luke Getsy is running is not working consistently enough to win. Even Brock Bower’s spectacular touchdown bailed out the Raiders’ rough first drive. If the Raiders want to win games they need to consider whether their play-caller can turn the offense around or Pierce needs to step in.
Brock Bowers is a Top Tight-End
The rookie Bowers was up to the challenge this week as he had his best game of the season going for a 57-yard touchdown and multiple first downs. Bowers isn’t being highlighted in the media for his blocking, but it has gotten better over time this season. Of course, his ability as a receiving tight end is already recognized as elite, but it will only get better if this offense improves as a whole. Bowers’ ability is being held back by his two dangerously average quarterbacks. Neither one has looked like they can truly carry this Raider offense, which was probably the final straw for Adams wanting out of Las Vegas. No matter which quarterback is playing neither one will be successful in this system. The real problem seems to be with play calling and an inability to be consistent on first and second down. Despite all this Bowers is shining despite being held back by his quarterback and offensive coordinator.
The Raiders have fallen to 2-3 on a disappointing start to the season. It’s far from over, but the issues that have brought the Raiders to this losing record look like rules not exceptions. Their offense needs drastic change to put a winning season together because they have not played a single game this season to prove that. They may have shown flashes of what they can do, but have yet to put together four solid quarters from start to finish. It’s simply unsustainable.
Main Image: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
