In a recent post by Mike Silver over at NFL.com, he took us through just what happened when some of the Raiders offensive linemen got very heated late in their win over the Broncos.
With a 23-13 lead midway through the fourth quarter, the Raiders defense forced a turnover on a strip sack by Khalil Mack. The Raiders took over at the Broncos’ 39-yard-line in scoring position with a two-score lead. And yet despite their success running the ball all day, the call was for a pass that for a moment appeared to have given the ball right back to the Broncos on a TJ Ward interception.
I immediately was like “What kind of call was that? Everything about that play was bad. From call to execution, to the pass itself.” So, yeah, the Oline’s frustration was understandable.
They have the numbers to back it up too.
The Raiders managed 124 yards on the ground in the first half alone which is the most the franchise has put up in a first half in three years (week 8 of 2013).
Then they finished with 218 yards on the ground; the most by the team this season and most by the franchise since week 2 of 2013.
Most of that yards were courtesy of Latavius Murray, who put up 114 on 20 carries (5.7 ypc) and 3 touchdowns. It was the first time Murray has surpassed 100 yards this season. His three touchdowns tied a franchise record for rushing scores in a game.
The other 104 yards came from the rookie running back tandem of Jalen Richard and DeAndré Washington who together lead the NFL in 2016 with six rushes of 25-plus yards.
The dominance wasn’t just on offense either. The defense kept the Broncos pinned down, holding them to 33 yards on 12 carries which is 2.8 yards per carry.
This is nothing new either. It’s the third consecutive game in which the Raiders have held Denver to less than 50 on the ground after allowing 43 yards in Week 5 and 34 in Week 14 of the 2015 season.
In case your were wondering, this wasn’t simply a case of playing from behind. Teams can often take to the air when they have to try and come back in games. The Broncos were bad from the opening kickoff — going three-and-out on their first four possessions.
it was the Raiders’ fifth first-quarter shutout of the season. They are tied for second in the NFL this season with 16 total points allowed during the first quarter of action.
By halftime, the Raiders already nearly doubled up the Broncos in Time of Possession. That continued in the second half with the Raiders finishing with final TOP of 41:28 to 18:32. That is the largest time of possession advantage the Raiders have had in a regulation game since 1993. TWENTY THREE YEARS.
They would lead throughout and dispense of the reigning Super Bowl champion Broncos 30-20.
Other superlatives:
- Speaking of records that have stood since the mid-90s; Derek Carr’s 20 completed passes to bring his career total to 932 which passes Jeff Hostetler (1993-96) for fifth on the Raiders’ all-time completions list.
- Khalil Mack’s second sack was of the strip variety. It came in the fourth quarter and marked his second multi-sack game of the season. Mack now has six multi-sack games in his career, tying him for third most by a Raider through his first three years.
- Reggie Nelson sealed the win with an interception. It was his fifth takeaway of the year (three interceptions and two fumble recoveries), tied for second most in the NFL this season.
- Marquette King added another 50-plus yard punt to his 2016 campaign. His 21 punts of 50-plus yards leads the NFL this season.
- On consecutive punts in the third quarter, King placed a punt at the 2-yard-line. That gives him an NFL-leading six punts inside the 10-yard line this season.
Loading comments...