Las Vegas Review-Journal (Sunday)
No defending this
Raiders must stop letting teams move ball at will
PATRICK Graham says it begins with him. He’s right. As much as the Raiders have struggled offensively at times trying to create in the passing game, their defense has lacked any level of consistency.
It has just been bad most weeks. Graham is the defensive coordinator hired by coach Josh Mcdaniels to create successful results on that side of the ball. That hasn’t occurred, and glaring numbers prove as much.
The plain truth: The Raiders at 2-5 rank 25th in total defense, 22nd in pass defense and 18th in scoring against. They’re last in sacks with nine. They’re 31st in red zone defense.
They have played the run well in most spots, ranked 10th against.
But it still hasn’t bothered opponents from moving the ball.
So much has been made about the team’s offensive line, how the large number of combinations used has caused for some struggles up front, particularly against the pass.
They’re not getting much push defensively, either.
“Well, it always starts with me in terms of just got to figure out a way to coach it better and put them in better spots to create some more negative plays in terms of the pass rush and getting some consistent pressure based on the flow of the game,” Graham said. “Again, no excuses. We just got to figure it out and just find a way to be more consistent in terms of getting pressure on the quarterback, but it starts with me.”
Where is Chandler?
You might suggest it also starts with Chandler Jones.
The edge rusher was signed to a three-year deal for $51 million ($34 million guaranteed) in the offseason, a four-time Pro Bowler who was thought to be the perfect complement on one end to Maxx Crosby on the other.
But things haven’t worked out in the first seven games, Jones with just half a sack and 16 pressures. It’s too bad. Crosby (six sacks) is having another Pro Bowl season and could be even more dominant if Jones lived up to expectations.
So, too, could a secondary that is far too soft most weeks.
If you can’t pressure up front, it often becomes impossible to cover on the back end. And if you want to beat the Raiders, throw to the middle of the field.
“You know, it’s not a one thing fix, and rankings sometimes can be misleading, but we are what we are,” Mcdaniels said. “And I think that this is a collective effort to play better all around. Defense is always a collective effort; 11 guys have to do their job the right way.”
Yes. There have been injuries. Nate Hobbs, a cornerback and arguably the team’s best defensive player not named Crosby, is on injured reserve with a broken hand. Another cornerback, Anthony Averett, also spent time on IR. Others who have missed time include safety Tre’von Moehrig and cornerback Rock Ya-sin. So, well, they’ve been beaten up some.
Collective effort
But blown assignments have become a norm in the secondary. Communication needs to improve. So does the team’s tackling, a glaring issue in recent weeks. Everyone is getting in on the whiffs.
The Raiders also haven’t forced near enough turnovers (four).
“We got to find ways to just help the team win,” Graham said. “You know, that’s the biggest thing. How can we affect the quarterback more? How can we create negative plays? Does it involve going into the bag of tricks?
“Sometimes it’s just trying to see if we could do some stuff better. But we’re open for all things right now.”
You can’t win if you can’t score. Well, stopping people usually also leads to success.
The Raiders haven’t been good enough at it. Graham hasn’t been good enough. It all meshes together.
It all leads to what has been a bad defense.
Ed Graney is a Sigma Delta Chi Award winner for sports column writing and can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com. He can be heard on “The Press Box,” ESPN Radio 100.9 FM and 1100 AM, from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday. Follow @ edgraney on Twitter.