Raiders quarter pole report: Offense

After watching the Raiders offense over these first four games, most fans can only close their eyes really hard and try to imagine things will improve as the rookie quarterback acclimates to the NFL and the newly retooled offensive line 'gels'. And based on the numbers, the only way they can go is up. Well, unless you count no movement at all.

Offense

Rank: 32^nd in yards (270 ypg), 32^nd in points (51)

The offense is led by rookie quarterback Derek Carr. He has had his struggles thus far as one would expect from a rookie but he has shown signs of improvement as well. His one area of improvement has been stepping into the pocket. He has been under a fair amount of pressure, though not an unusual amount. He's also had seven passes dropped which is also not an unusually high amount (tied for 11th with 8 other quarterbacks). As far as his rating from Pro Football Focus, it is 34th among 38 eligible quarterbacks. He leads the NFL with six passes tipped at the line and his four interceptions is tied for sixth.

His pass catchers have been pretty suspect this season. The most dependable receiver he has is James Jones who has 21 catches for 272 yards and 2 touchdowns. His one real blemish was having three fumbled in week two against the Texans including twice on the same play. It was a shame because otherwise he had a great game, catching nine passes for 112 yards and a touchdown.

Other than Jones, the receivers have done little to nothing. Rod Streater has nearly been an invisible man over three starts with 9 catches on just 13 targets before he went down with a broken foot. Denarius Moore was a healthy scratch in London after dropping a pass that was intercepted and killed the Raiders hopes of tying the game against the Patriots in week three. Andre Holmes has had his mental lapses in route running and is now expected to step up as the starter once again. The team added Vincent Brown as a free agent and are hoping for more contributions from him as well.

The tight ends have been as expected - nothing special. David Ausberry has been a ghost after missing most of preseason with an injury. Mychal Rivera is the leading pass catcher in the group with 12 catches for 83 yards and no touchdowns. He also had a crucial fumble in the route against the Texans in week two. There is one touchdown in the group - Brian Leonhardt who caught his first career TD last week in an otherwise international embarrassment in London against the Dolphins.

The one area that was supposed to be improved the most coming into this season was the run blocking. The Raiders brought in former right tackle Austin Howard and moved him to guard, then they signed Kevin Boothe and drafted Gabe Jackson. They also signed Maurice Jones-Drew and re-signed Darren McFadden looking for a two-headed monster. None of that has happened.

MJD injured his hand in the opener after averaging 1.2 yards per carry. He returned last week but along with barely seeing the field, was ineffective with two carries for one yard. Darren McFadden has averaged 3.4 yards per carry which is just about what we expect from him after two-straight seasons averaging 3.3 yards per carry.

As a team, the Raiders currently sit at 61.5 rushing yards per game which is dead last in the NFL over the first four games. They have just one rush over 20 yards (Derek Carr's 41-yard scramble) and one rushing touchdown (McFadden). Their 3.4 yards per carry as a team is fifth worst in the NFL but all four teams ahead of them (Chargers, Lions, Panthers, Broncos) have prolific passing offenses. The Raiders do not.

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