Raiders’ defense as bad as ever in loss to Colts
OAKLAND — The Indianapolis Colts did as they pleased in a 42-28 win at the Coliseum before an announced crowd of 54,372 which was demoralized at the sight of a defense which is as bad or worse than anything the Raiders have put on the field in recent years.
“We don’t get many possessions,” Gruden said. “We don’t get the ball very often. I just think defensively, we’ve got to take a long look at who we can get on the field to help right now. We’re struggling.”
Struggling would be the kind way to put it, and don’t even bother trying to bring Khalil Mack into the conversation. Yes, Mack would make them marginally better if healthy (he isn’t right now). But keep in mind the Raiders have played poor defense for nearly all of the last 15 years. Even the four when Mack was on the team.
The Colts racked up 28 first downs, had 222 yards rushing and 239 passing and a 36:30 to 23:30 advantage in time of possession. They averaged 7.7 yards per play and the Raiders barely breathed on quarterback Andrew Luck, who was 22 of 31 for 239 yards and three touchdowns.
Indianapolis kept the ball almost the entire first quarter. The Raiders had three snaps and punted.
As good as Luck is, keep in mind the Colts arrived with a 2-5 record. The Raiders have been like this against everybody, as evidenced by their average of 6.7 yards per play allowed coming in.
Go ahead and take Gruden to task for everything responsible for 1-6 — he invites it — but perhaps his biggest miscalculation was the belief that the hiring of Paul Guenther as defensive coordinator would help elevate the defense from awful to somewhere in the vicinity of average.
If that could be achieved, the thinking went, an offense which has more than twothirds of the Raiders’ salary cap dollars could put them in position for a competitive and maybe even winning season.
Not that Guenther is the primary culprit, any more Chuck Bresnahan, Rob Ryan, Bresnahan again, John Marshall, Jason Tarver and finally Ken Norton Jr. were at fault since the unit first went south in 2003 and never found its way back.
There’s something systemic about the Raiders ability to put together defensive personnel, whether it was under Al Davis, Reggie McKenzie and now Gruden which prevents them from putting difference-makers on the field.
The Raiders tried to change things up against the Colts by starting second-year cornerback Gareon Conley and third-year safety Karl Joseph — both first-round draft picks. They also played rookie inside linebacker Jason Cabinda. Defensive end Bruce Irvin got his least amount of work this season.