Quick thoughts and key points from the Raiders vs. Titans game

James Arcellana
Updated
CARRnew2
CARRnew2

The Oakland Raiders played their third preseason game of the year on Saturday night when they played host to the Tennessee Titans. And for those worried about the team’s offense had their nerves relaxed while those who were concerned about the team’s defense probably came away feeling that those concerns were validated. The final score was 24-17 in favor of the Titans, but that’s not what matters since we all know these games don’t count, but they do matter.

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Here are some quick thoughts that stood out to me as the key points when watching and re-watching the game:

  • Latavius Murray did not look good. Meanwhile, DeAndre Washington and Jalen Richard both looked better than Murray. Both of the rookie backs saw a lot of time in this game, both as running backs as well as returners and both looked very good. I would expect both to make the roster and wouldn’t be surprised if Murray lost his starting job in the near future.

  • Meanwhile, the run defense did not look good as the Tennessee run game, led by DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry went off on the Raiders. By half time, the first team Raiders defense had given up over 100 yards on the ground, and that’s a concern.

  • I’m starting to wonder if the 3-4 formation is going to work for the Raiders. This is the first year we’ve seen the Raiders really run with the 3-4 base front and it does not seem as though they have done very well with it. The run defense hasn’t been good and neither has the pass rush.

  • One of the biggest issues with the Raiders defense was poor tackling. Had the Raiders made the tackle on their first opportunity on every play, the first half would not have looked anywhere near as bad as it did for the defense.

  • Two corners, two stories. Sean Smith struggled and was picked on a bit by Marcus Mariota. Meanwhile, David Amerson had himself one hell of a game, making multiple plays and looking very good doing it. That being said, earlier in the preseason we saw Smith play very well so it’s not something to be worried about.

  • Derek Carr looked real good against the Titans and perhaps more importantly, he looked good with his number one target, Amari Cooper. I’ve been waiting all preseason for these two to go off together and I finally got what I wanted in game three. These are two guys who could be playing together for a decade or more and if they keep growing together, it’s going to be something incredible to watch.

  • Johnny Holton looks like he has all but locked up the number five receiver spot. He isn’t anything special but you can clearly see the potential he has. Plus, there simply isn’t any other wideout after the top four who has shown much to get excited over.

  • Jihad Ward is a massive human being. Seeing him on TV then seeing him in real life are two different things. From appearances alone the guy looks like he’s in his on league along the defensive line.

  • Speaking of Ward, I saw him get double teamed a number of times in Saturday night’s game. That’s pretty impressive considering he’s a rookie with only two preseason games under his belt. Tennessee must have seen something on the tape to make them think it wise to focus so much on Ward.

  • James Cowser didn’t play a snap on defense. I had to go back and check the stats to make sure it was true after watching and being surprised I didn’t see him on the field. It’s rather surprising but also probably indicates that the Raiders are so confident with him that they didn’t need to see more and preferred to see what other guys had to offer.

  • I really think Michael Crabtree is going to have a massive year for the Raiders. What we saw last season was just scratching the surface.

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