SCOUTING REPORT: RAIDERS AT CARDINALS
The Cardinals meet the Raiders on Sunday at State Farm Stadium. The game kicks off at 2:05 p.m. and is televised on Channel 5.
Bob McManaman offers his scouting report and prediction:
Cardinals on offense
Coordinator Byron Leftwich and head coach Steve Wilks have to decide if it’s worth using max protection for rookie quarterback Josh Rosen against a Raiders’ defense that has shown absolutely no threat of a viable pass rush. Oakland has a league-low eight total sacks. The Cardinals, by contrast, have 29. Rosen was roughed up last week in Kansas City, however, and he is worth protecting at all costs so expect to see occasional six- and seven-man fronts. The Cardinals probably don’t need to go with three- or four-wide receiver sets very often to get the better of this bad Raiders’ team. See if they are able to neutralize running back David Johnson. If they can’t, and the likely won’t be able to, then Johnson should have another huge game like the one he had against the Chiefs. One thing to keep in mind is Arizona’s offensive line is pretty beat up at the moment and backups could be pressed into starting roles once again. That didn’t work against Johnson and the run game last week, however. This would be a good week, meanwhile, for Leftwich to let Rosen throw the deep ball more frequently. The Cardinals haven’t really let J.J. Nelson take the top off a defense.
Cardinals on defense
This unit has picked things up considerably over the past few weeks and it’s showing up across the board. The Cardinals are still allowing too many yards per play in the passing game, but that shouldn’t be a burden this week against Raiders quarterback Derek Carr and his weakened receiving corps. Oakland doesn’t have a Tyreek Hill-type of threat that can run circles around the Cardinals’ secondary. It’s no secret how Arizona plans to win this side of the ball. The game plan will focus heavily on rattling and disrupting Carr with a steady pass rush from defensive ends Chandler Jones and Markus Golden, with occasional safety blitzes and whichever healthy-enough defensive tackles can help chip in to the cause. Carr can get flustered in a hurry and that leads directly to self-induced mistakes. Keep an eye on the Cardinals’ slot corner/third safety, who will play a key role in this game. Budda Baker, the regular starter there, is banged up. The Cardinals may have to move cornerback Bene’ Benwikere to that spot and ask for help from another cornerback to start opposite Patrick Peterson. A point of emphasis will have to be containing tight end Jared Cook, the Raiders’ most consistent passcatching threat. Wide receiver Jordy Nelson can still go off, but he’s been bothered by a bone bruise on his knee and seems disinterested in playing for the Raiders.
Special teams
The Raiders have a premier return man in Dwayne Harris, who ranks in the Top 10 in both kickoff returns (21.5 yards per return) and punt returns (10.7). Though Cardinals’ punt returner Christian Kirk has yet to show any consistent threats on his return attempts, the team finally decided to let T.J. Logan handle kickoff returns and he was excellent last week against the Chiefs. He can break one at a moment’s notice and it won’t be a shocker if he does it in this game. Oakland, meanwhile is on its third kicker already this season and Daniel Carlson, with just three field goals, has actually gotten less work than Arizona’s Phil Dawson, who has made four of six.
Bottom line
Conceivably, this is a game the Cardinals should own from start to finish. The problem, of course, is the Cardinals haven’t been able to do anything with ease or precision. There were some nice positives out of last week’s loss in Kansas City and if those trends continue, they shouldn’t have any problems against the Raiders. I get the feeling, though, that this game will be a lot closer than people think.