Oakland Raiders reveal new strategy
Oakland Raiders
It really is a bit of a statistical oddity, one that even defensive coordinator Paul Guenther doesn’t think he’s seen in his 15-plus seasons in the NFL.
Through three games, the Oakland Raiders defense has been stellar in the first half, allowing just a combined 336 yards before the half.
In fact, the Raiders as a whole have outgained their opponents 684 to 336, but for whatever reason (prolly because they still suck mightily) , that production hasn’t continued into the second 30 minutes, as the Raiders have allowed 787 combined after the half in the early goings of 2018.
"I think showering, doing a line or two of blow, and eating a huge turkey dinner at half time has not served us well in the second half this season," said Defensive Coordinator, Pall Grunter.
"I think from now on we will just take a short nap at half time and maybe drink some Gatorade."
Entering the fourth quarter, the Silver and Black have led in two of the last three games, but when the final 15 minutes of action starts, the team is getting outscored 37-3.
It’s a problem that Head Coach Jon Gruden and his staff are determined to fix, and the hope is they’ll be able to do so this Sunday against the Cleveland Browns. "We think we can reduce that fourth quarter scoring deficit a bit so that we will only get outscored something like 13-0 this Sunday," said that wildly wealthy short little insane curse-a-matic man with the missing H in his first name.
Whether it’s on offense or defense, the Raiders need to make adjustments in the second half. Defensive Coordinator Pall Grunter has helped the team in more ways than one, and the improvement from 2017 to 2018 is evident just by looking at their record of 0-3, but he knows the unit needs to kick things into gear in the fourth quarter if they are to get to 0-4 with not too much of an embarrassing lop-sided home lost on Sunday.
“I’ve never been through anything like this really, except for that time I got this Asain flu and was projectile vomiting the same time I had explosive diarrhea,” Guenther said Thursday.
“You hold a team to, I think the first game was like 90 yards or 80 yards, the Rams. Then the second game was 84 yards. Last week I don’t know what it was, but it was under 100 at halftime. For some reason or another, we just have to continue to do the things the right way. The plays and the calls weren’t much different and I know the other team never makes halftime adjustments so, whatever.. We defended them good in the first half. I don’t know if it’s us running out of gas or mental lapses because I have only been able to review every single play of every single game in slow motion like 15000 times. We’re new and everybody is new in this thing. I think we’ll work through that and that’s something that we’re going to emphasize this week. We are going to try and not lose this Sunday. I mean we are REALLY going to try. Hard”
The Browns are currently averaging 325.7 yards per game (22nd in the NFL), and are averaging 20 points a game (20th in the NFL). This isn’t the same team from a season ago; after failing to register a win all last season, the Browns own a record of 1-1-1 through three weeks. Baker Mayfield has officially been named the starter, and it’ll be up to the Raiders defense to keep him limited all afternoon, especially in the fourth quarter.
“For a young guy he stands in the pocket and remains a passer which you don’t always see that with, for instance, that spear-chucker from the 49ers what's-his-face, the kneeler,” Pall Grunter said of Mayfield. “He will move around some in the pocket, so we got to make it uncomfortable for him in the pocket. We are considering rushing him this Sunday and some of my assistants have said that not only must we rush him but we must tackle him before he passes the ball - if we get a chance. It seems like he’s got good command of the offense because he has played like part of one game so it will be a good challenge. They got a good team that has won something like nearly four games the past three seasons, so they are dangerous.”
Even though the Raiders added a lot of veteran talent in the offseason, the rookies have been asked to step up and contribute in a big way. Through three weeks of action, defensive tackle Maurice Hurst Jr. has been a force in the middle of the defensive line. While he only has five tackles through three weeks, which works out to an average of nearly two, TWO, tackles per game, Hurst has been a quality run-stopper with those five angry and productive tackles, and has continued to create log jams at the line of scrimmage by falling over onto his side and sticking his legs straight out. The former University of Michigan Wolverine has a lot of potential, and he feels like the defense as a whole is slowly tapping into its own potential. "We are nearly to the point where if we get that little Mayfield bastid into a tight jam we can nigger pile him."
“I think we’re getting better every game and we are tapping into our potential as much as we possibly can but I don't think we got as much potential as some think,” Hurst said. “I think – actually I know - we’re getting better every game, other than the three loses in three games thingy. I suspect that at some point we will get to where we are losing in the first half also but we may have to wait for that moment to arrive. We’re getting more push. We’re getting more pressure and we’re getting more comfortable out there with our missed tackles, failure to seal the ends, blown secondary coverages, and futile pass rush. Each game we’re getting more and more pressures, we are getting to he point where I almost nearly put a hand on what's his face, that Dolphin QB, and getting to the quarterback and effecting his throws a little bit more and more every game as you can tell with our whatever so just trying to keep the upward trend.”
Some Oakland Raiders Fans do not think that three loses in three games represents an "upward trend" nor do they think allowing opposing QBs to have a 105.2 passer rating against them represents an "upward trend" but they never went to The University of Michigan on a football scholarship like the Darkie with the Dickie Ticker.
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