In a shocker, the Las Vegas Raiders were blown out 36-22 by the Carolina Panthers. This was not how most saw their home opener going. Las Vegas followed up an upset win in Baltimore by once again losing to Andy Dalton. The Panthers were 2-15 last season and 0-2 this season behind Bryce Young before turning to Dalton. This joins the growing list of embarrassing Raiders losses in recent years.
Antonio Pierce Was Honest In Defeat
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After the game, Head Coach Antonio Pierce was honest in his assessment of the team. When asked about how he felt about the battle at the line of scrimmage, Pierce stated. “We got our ass whooped.” He also lamented for the fans who booed the team saying “I would’ve booed us too.”
Pierce stated his concern for the team’s effort by saying that he felt “certain players on the team made business decisions. We will make business decisions too moving forward.” Pierce also apologized to Raider Nation and stated there were no positives from this game. He said there will be changes moving forward for the Las Vegas Raiders.
‘AOC’ Flashed In Relief
Minshew was benched in favor of backup Aidan O’Connell. O’Connell was 9/12 for 82 yards and a touchdown in relief. It brings back the preseason quarterback competition to the forefront.
Minshew has been statistically exciting during the season. The problem is that on the season, the Las Vegas Raiders are 1-2. He got the job done in the fourth quarter in Baltimore but struggled heavily against the Chargers and Panthers. Across 12 quarters of football, the Raiders offense has been productive for only one of them.
Raiders’ Defense Got Rifled Down
There’s a reason why Dalton’s nickname used to be the “Red Rifle.” He looked like prime Tom Brady as he rifled in pass after pass through the Las Vegas Raiders defense. The Las Vegas Raiders almost looked helpless trying to stop him on defense as Dalton moved to 5-0 against them.
There’s no excuse for how the defense performed. There’s an expectation for them to play better than this and on Sunday, they didn’t. Dalton finished with 319 yards and three touchdowns, similar to his numbers the last time he shredded the Las Vegas Raiders.
Luke Getsy, What Was That?
Sincerely, what was the offensive game plan for the Las Vegas Raiders? Once again, the league’s worst rushing attack failed to get anything more than a couple of yards per carry. This was against the league’s worst run defense too which makes it even more concerning.
The passing game was never in sync as Tight End Brock Bowers only had one catch in the first half. Minshew settled for check-downs for the majority of the game but also forced passes into triple coverage. The offense settled into a predictable set of run-run-pass sequences which even Carolina was able to stop with ease.
The Running Game Is Not Running
Here is the good news, the Las Vegas Raiders finally had over 100 yards rushing as a team. Here is the bad news, they somehow only gained 55 yards against the Panthers. This is despite the Panthers coming in with the 32nd-ranked rushing defense after two rough weeks.
After losing Josh Jacobs this offseason, it’s apparent that Zamir White and Alexander Mattison might not be the answer. The running back committee hasn’t adapted well to the new offensive scheme and has failed to get going. Something needs to change for the Las Vegas Raiders before next Sunday when they take on the Cleveland Browns.
Tre Tucker’s Breakout Party
There was one positive to Sunday’s beating. Tre Tucker emerged as a solid slot receiver. The deep threat led the team with 96 yards on seven catches plus a touchdown. Tucker’s rookie season features flashes where he looked to become the new starting slot receiver. The Raiders need another receiving threat to go along with Jakobi Meyers, Bowers, and Davante Adams. In the modern NFL, a team can never have too many good receivers to catch the football.
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