Originally published on Silver & Black Report on Dec. 22, 2013 The San Diego Chargers and Oakland Raiders headed into Sunday's match-up with two complete different story lines on the season. The Raiders face questions about their future with rumors of a coaching change swirling around, while the Chargers still held hope of making the playoffs after the Dolphins lost to the Buffalo Bills during the morning games. With the Raiders struggling to get their offense going, the Chargers took control of the first quarter with a 16-play possession on their first drive, winding 9:15 off the clock but only resulting in a field goal from Nick Novak to put the Chargers up 3-0 early. Cornerback Mike Jenkins came up to make a big hit on Chargers running back Danny Woodhead to limit the Chargers to the field goal attempt. The Raiders were able to take advantage of a couple of Chargers turnovers in the second quarter to get some points on the board. [caption id="attachment_12384" align="alignleft" width="300"]<a href="http://www.sbreport.net/wp-content/dmc2.jpg"><img alt="Raiders running back Darren McFadden scores his first touchdown since week eight" src="http://www.sbreport.net/wp-content/dmc2-300x198.jpg" width="300" height="198" /></a> Raiders running back Darren McFadden scores his first touchdown since week eight[/caption] Oakland's first score came off of a fumble by Chargers quarterback Phillip Rivers went up to make a call adjustment at the line of scrimmage but center Nick Hardwick snapped the ball and Raiders linebacker Miles Burris recovered the loose ball on the 42-yard line. Raiders running back Darren McFadden punched the ball in from five yards out to give him his first touchdown since week eight. The score gave the Raiders the 10-3 lead. The touchdown was made possible by an acrobatic catch by tight end Mychal Rivera, who hauled in a 37-yard reception from Matt McGloin to give the Raiders first and goal from the five. [caption id="attachment_12385" align="alignright" width="198"]<a href="http://www.sbreport.net/wp-content/jenkins1.jpg"><img alt="Raiders cornerback Mike Jenkins picks off Phillip Rivers" src="http://www.sbreport.net/wp-content/jenkins1-198x300.jpg" width="198" height="300" /></a> Raiders cornerback Mike Jenkins picks off Phillip Rivers[/caption] The Raiders would force another turnover as Rivers and the Chargers were driving down the field. Jenkins would make another big play as he leaped in front of wide receiver Vincent Brown to come down with the interception, giving the Raiders the ball on their own 10-yard line. But the Raiders could not capitalize on the gained possession. McGloin gave the ball right back to the Chargers as he was picked off by safety Eric Weddle for his 8th interception of the season. Chargers running back Ryan Mathews would run the ball in from seven yards out to give the Chargers the lead again, 10-7. It looked as if the Raiders would be giving the ball back to the Chargers with enough time for them to tack on to their lead but Chargers rookie wide receiver Keenan Allen muffed Marquette King's punt, giving the Raider another chance to get on the board before the half. The Raiders used a nice play on a screen to Marcel Reece to get to the two-yard line with first and goal. But the Chargers defense would stand, forcing two incomplete passes and run for no gain. The Raiders would settle for a field goal, heading into halftime tied with the Chargers 10-10. The Chargers would be the first to score in the second half as well as Rivers found Allen wide open in the end zone with a pick play to give the Chargers the 17-0 lead. With wide receiver Jacoby Ford a healthy scratch, rookie Greg Jenkins handled return duties and made a crucial mistake. Jenkins brought a ball out from relatively deep in the end zone and fumbled the ball with the Raiders down 20-10 late in the third quarter. The defense would ultimately hold, but the Chargers would take a 23-10 lead off of the turnover. [caption id="attachment_12386" align="alignleft" width="300"]<a href="http://www.sbreport.net/wp-content/streater4.jpg"><img alt="Streater goes up for a touchdown though the play was ultimately ruled incomplete" src="http://www.sbreport.net/wp-content/streater4-300x198.jpg" width="300" height="198" /></a> Streater goes up for a touchdown though the play was ultimately ruled incomplete[/caption] The Raiders seemed to be making a late run at the Chargers after forcing field goals and McGloin finding a wide-open Rod Streater at the goal line. After one referee ruled it a touchdown, another said the ball came out and was incomplete. Allen challenged the play but the ruling on the field stood, resulting in an incomplete pass. The play in question occurred with 4:46 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Raiders would extend the play and get down to the Chargers one-yard line, before an illegal formation penalty would force a fourth and goal from the six yard line with just :59 remaining. With no time, McGloin tossed a ball up at the goal line and Reece dropped the reception. Given the ball on-downs, Rivers could take a knee and secure the win as the Raiders had no timeouts remaining. The Raiders return home to finish off the season as they host the Denver Broncos and Peyton Manning, who has already broken the record for most touchdown passes in a season (51).
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Originally published on Silver & Black Report on Dec. 19, 2013
The Oakland Raiders only have four wins on the season but that includes a big one against the San Diego Chargers in week 5, when the Raiders won the late-night match-up 27-17 at O.Co Coliseum. But this week, the Raiders head down the Pacific Coast to take on the Chargers on their home field of Qualcomm Stadium. The Raiders jumped out to a quick start with Terrelle Pryor at quarterback during their week-five match-up, scoring 24-straight points to open up with a 17-0 lead in the first half. The Chargers did make a late run, but the Raiders would hold on to the 24-17 victory. Both teams are coming off other AFC West match-ups with the Raiders losing at home against the Kansas City Chiefs and the Chargers coming off an impressive 27-20 victory against the AFC West-leading Denver Broncos last Thursday. Running back Ryan Mathews has been improved as of late for the Chargers, running for 127 yards and a touchdown in the win against the Broncos. Mathews now has 100+ rushing yards in the last two weeks with his 127 yards last week. Oakland's defense will need to find a way to contain Mathews and limit his productivity. On top of that, the Raiders defense will need to keep an eye on backup running back Danny Woodhead out of the backfield. Wodohead is used primarily on passing downs for his bass-blocking capabilities, but there's no doubt that the Chargers are going to look to get him the ball in the open field with screens after they saw Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles haul in eight receptions for 195 yards and four touchdowns. Raiders linebacker Kevin Burnett sacks Phillip Rivers in their week-five matchup Chargers quarterback Phillip Rivers has had a bounce-back season after his rough season last year. This year, Rivers is averaging 279.5 yards per game, the fourth best in the NFL. Rivers has found his newest go-to wide receiver in rookie third-round pick Keenan Allen, who came out of Cal. Allen currently leads the Chargers with 931 receiving yards, while adding seven reception touchdowns. Rivers also still has reliable tight end Antonio Gates who has always had good games against the Raiders. Gates currently leads the Chargers in receptions with 70. Rivers and the Chargers offense will be a tough match-up for a Raiders defense that is ranked 24th in the league, giving up 254.4 yards per game. The Raiders have struggled to get off of the field on third down and it won't be any easier on Sunday. The Chargers offense has been the best in the league, converting 48.3 percent of their third downs, while the Raiders have only stopped 41.1 percent. Oakland's defense needs to find a way to get the Chargers to third and longs and then find a pass rush to force fourth downs. Matt McGloin and the Raiders offense will look to attack a Chargers defense that is ranked 29th in the league with giving up 267.4 passing yards per game. The undrafted rookie McGloin is coming off a performance in which he had four turnovers (three interceptions and one fumble) while throwing for a career-hgih 297 yards and two touchdowns. He will need to take care of the football better Sunday to keep up with an offense that scores 24.5 points per game. McGloin has thrown 15 passing plays of 25 yards or more since being named the starter in week 11, the most of any quarterback in the league. The Raiders offense will look for this trend to continue on Sunday with Rod Streater, Andre Holmes and Denarius Moore. Don't expect the Raiders to abandon the run though as Rashad Jennings continues to be one of the Raiders' best offensive weapons. The Chargers rank in the middle of the league while allowing 108.8 rushing yards per game. Getting Jennings going will help keep the defense honest and help open up the passing game for McGloin. Greg Olson and the Raiders offense also look like they will be getting running back Darren McFadden back from injury. It will be interesting to see how the coaches decided to utilize his talents with Jennings running so well in his place while he remained out with injury. There's no question that the Raiders would love to play the role of spoiler with the Chargers still fighting for a postseason berth as the second AFC Wild Card. MILESTONES TO WATCH FOR: DE Lamarr Houston • Needs three sacks to enter the top 20 in Raiders team history. K Sebastian Janikowski • Has now converted on 162-consecutive PAT attempts. • Needs just 20 points to reach 1,500 for his career. • Needs 23 games played to pass Tim Brown and move into sole possession of first place on the Raiders’ all-time games played list. CB Mike Jenkins • Needs one interception to reach 10 for his career. RB Rashad Jennings • Has already surpassed his career-high with 679 rushing yards on the year. • Has already surpassed his career-high with 936 total yards on the year. RB Darren McFadden • Needs 315 rushing yards to eclipse 4,000 yards for his career. • Needs 470 receiving yards to eclipse 1,500 yards for his career. • Needs one rushing TD to move into sole posession of ninth place on the franchise’s career list, and two to tie No. 8 Charlie Smith (24, 1968-74). McFadden enters the game with 22. WR Denarius Moore • Needs 26 receiving yards to reach 2,000 for his career. QB Terrelle Pryor • Is currently first amongst all quarterbacks with 527 rushing yards. Pryor could eclipse the Raiders’ single-season mark of rushing yards by a quarterback with just 3 more yards. Rich Gannon set the mark in 2000 with 529. WR Rod Streater • Needs 70 receiving yards to reach 1,500 for his career and 154 for 1,000 this year. S Charles Woodson • Needs six interceptions to tie Ed Reed for first on the interceptions list among all active players with 62. • Needs one INT-TD to pass Rod Woodson for first on the all-time list with 12. • Needs one defensive touchdown to pass Rod Woodson and Darren Sharper for the most defensive touchdowns in NFL history with 13. Originally published on Silver & Black Report on Dec. 15, 2013
Though the Raiders are currently riding a four-game losing streak, one positive to come out of the Raiders locker room is the emergence of wide receiver Andre Holmes. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound wide receiver has come in and taken advantage of his increased playing time after fellow wide receiver Denarius Moore went down with a shoulder injury before week 12. With Moore down, Holmes got his first-career start but hauled in just two receptions for 32 yards. Holmes then had a breakout game against the Dallas Cowboys the next week, hauling in seven receptions for 136 yards against his former team. Holmes had just two receptions for 11 yards in his previous two years with the Cowboys, including some time on the Patriots practice squad this past off season before joining the Silver & Black. The former Hillsdale product showed his great athletic ability in training camp but had to sit out and serve a four-game suspension for PEDs before he could join the Raiders in the regular season. Holmes wasn't activated until week six, and didn't haul in his first pass until week 11 against the Texans where he hauled in one reception for 33 yards. The third-year wide receiver showed his athleticism once again on Sunday in the Raiders 56-31 loss, hauling in four receptions for 58 yards and one touchdown, his first career touchdown. Holmes' first-career touchdown came on the Raiders first drive of the second half as they attempted to mount a comeback. Quarterback Matt McGloin rolled out right and threw it back over the middle as he found a wide-open Holmes for the six-yard touchdown, cutting the Chiefs' lead to 35-24. McGloin and Holmes have found solid chemistry as all of Holmes' receptions this season have come in games in which McGloin has started. "He’s a great guy to be around," McGloin said of Holmes. "He works his tail off. He shows up each and every day at practice. He’s eager to learn. He’s not a guy that’s going to say a lot. He’s going to go about his business day-in and day-out and do what he’s told. I see that throughout the course of the week so I want to give him opportunities to get the ball.” McGloin's faith in the young wide receiver has grown as Holmes has shown the ability to attack the ball and go up and get it. "He's a guy that will go and get the ball for you,'' McGloin said following the Cowboys game a couple of weeks ago. "He's a guy I look forward to try and get the ball to because he does good things when he gets the ball in his hands.'' Holmes displayed this ability exceptionally in the third quarter of Sunday's game when he went up for a ball on third and seven and came down with a beautiful one-handed catch over the defender. The phenomenal play extended the drive that ultimately culminated in another touchdown, briefly cutting the Chiefs lead to 35-31. (You can see the sequence of the play below). It's plays like these that made the Raiders coaches excited about their new prospect in training camp. After being picked up off of waivers in May, Holmes could very well develop into the big-framed, athletic wide receiver that the Raiders have been missing if he can continue to learn and excel. Originally published on Silver & Black Report on Dec. 15, 2013
The Kansas City Chiefs continued to utilize the screen pass to the speedy Jamaal Charles and executed it flawlessly over and over en route to their 56-31 victory over the Raiders on Sunday. Raiders head coach Dennis Allen says the Chiefs didn’t surprise them with the screen pass, rather his defense was just out-executed. “Yeah, it was something that… it wasn’t anything where we didn’t think they were going to run any screens. We were anticipating screens, we just didn’t play them as well as we needed to play them.” The Chiefs opened up the game with a 49-yard touchdown on a screen pass from Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith to Charles on the first play from the line of scrimmage, resulting in Charles’ first of four touchdown receptions for the game. Three of Charles’ four touchdown receptions came on screen calls by Andy Reid and his coaching staff, with Charles scoring from 49, 39, and 16 yards out. The 49-yard touchdown screen on the first play was the best defended, yet the Raiders were still unable to get to Charles and bring him down. Raiders defenders struggled to even get close to Charles on the other two. Charles’ second screen play came on a 3rd and 19 when defensive coordinator Jason Tarver dialed up a blitz. Reid’s screen to Charles was the perfect play call as the remaining defenders were out in coverage and Charles had blockers ahead of him to lead him perfectly to his 39-yard touchdown scamper. Middle linebacker Nick Roach acknowledges that they knew screens were going to be part of Chiefs game plan, they were just unable to defend it. “Even if you know it’s coming, you still have to stop it,” Roach said. "You have to give credit to them for making the plays, but if we have some missed tackles on big plays like that then it’s kind of our fault too for not trying to get things right it can be a number of different factors and a good team will take advantage of it.” Veteran safety Charles Woodson didn’t have an answer as to why they were unable to stop the Chiefs screen plays, but does know that it shouldn’t be something a team can do so consistently in the NFL. “I have no clue. You’ve seen screens get out of the gates before, but to have a team go back to it and beat you almost every time, there’s no explanation for it. It shouldn’t happen. It did happen, but it shouldn’t. I don’t know man, that’s hard.” Woodson attributes much of the Raiders defensive struggles with big plays to their lack of fundamentals. This is a game that’s all about fundamentals and when you don’t carry out the fundamentals, things like what happened today happen: big plays happen, long runs happen. If you don’t play good, sound football and take care of your responsibility, you can’t get away from it.” Though there’s just two games remaining, there’s no doubt that the Raiders’ final two opponents are taking note of the Raiders’ inability to guard the screen on Sunday. The Chargers and Broncos certainly have running backs more than capable of executing the screen play. Originally published on Silver & Black Report on Dec. 15, 2013 The Oakland Raiders returned home after dropping their last two games on the road but didn't see any increase success as Jamaal Charles and the Kansas City Chiefs came to town. The Raiders defense, which has not looked good as of late, hit a new low as they gave up 56 points to the Chiefs in their 56-31 loss. The 56 points is the most points ever allowed by the Raiders in franchise history. Andy Reid turned to his speedy back early and often as Charles led the rout of the Raiders early with a screen pass from Alex Smith to quickly take the lead. Following a 50-yard kickoff return to the 49-yard line by Quentin Demps, Smith through a screen out to the left to Charles who scampered 49 yards untouched for the touchdown on the first play from scrimmage. That would become the theme for the day, as Charles finished with eight receptions for 195 yards and four touchdowns. And if it isn't broken, why fix it? The Chiefs went right back to the Charles well on their second drive. After being pushed back to a 3rd and 19, Smith swung it out back to his left for a screen to Charles once again who went 39 yards for another touchdown to put the Chiefs up 14-3. Then it was time for the Chiefs defense to get on the board. On 3rd and three, Chiefs safety read Raiders quarterback Matt McGloin's eyes and intercepted his pass and returned it all the way for a touchdown, putting the Chiefs up 21-3 in the first quarter. Kansas City held the best turnover ratio coming into the game at +15, and they only increased that number today as they forced another seven. McGloin had five of his own (four interceptions and one fumbled snap), while special teams specialist Taiwan Jones added a fumble of his own on a kick return. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor, who replaced McGloin in the fourth quarter, threw an interception as well. The Chiefs only had one turnover of their own, a fumble by Smith. Berry had a second interception in the second quarter. The turnover once again culminated in a screen pass for a touchdown from Charles, this time from 16 yards out and to put the Chiefs up 35-10. The Raiders were able to head into halftime only down 35-17, scoring on two goal-line touchdowns from running back Rashad Jennings. The Raiders seemingly made adjustments on offense to start the second half, scoring two touchdowns to cut the Chiefs lead to just four points. McGloin was able to find cornerback/running back Taiwan Jones for a big 52-yard gain that set up a six-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Andre Holmes, for his first-career touchdown. After a big stop on defense, the Raiders were able to get back on the board with a touchdown pass to tight end Mychal Rivera for the touchdown. The touchdown was made possible by a spectacular one-handed catch by Holmes for a gain of 28 yards on 3rd and 7. The touchdown made the score 35-31 with just under five minutes remaining in the third quarter. But that would be the closest the Raiders would get to the Chiefs as Charles once again beat the Raiders defense for yet another touchdown reception. On 3rd and one, Smith found Charles on a wheel route for a 71-yard touchdown reception. Linebacker Miles Burris was in coverage but could not keep upu with the much-speedier back. Things escalated quickly as Jones' fumble came on the following kickoff, giving Smith and the Chiefs offense a short field. Smith capitalized with a six-yard touchdown reception to tight end Sean McGrath, making the score 49-31. The Chiefs final touchdown would occur following yet another McGloin interception in the fourth quarter. Backup running back Knile Davis, who was inserted after Reid pulled Charles, broke free for a 17-yard touchdown run to give the Chiefs the final score of 56-31. Pryor replaced the McGloin for the rest of the game but was largely ineffective as well, finishing 1/4 for 12 yards and one interception. McGloin was 18/36 for 297 yards, two touchdowns and four interceptions. Things don't get any easier for the Raiders as they head to San Diego to take on the Chargers followed up by hosting the Denver Broncos for the season-finale. Both teams will likely be playing for playoff contention and/or seeding. Originally published on Silver & Black Report on Dec. 14, 2013
The Raiders announced on Saturday that they have placed injured safety Tyvon Branch on the injured reserve, ending his season with just three games remaining in the season. Branch went out with an ankle/leg injury in week two and has not returned since and was previously listed as "doubtful" on the injury report for this week's match-up against the Kansas City Chiefs. Branch will finish his sixth NFL season (all with the Raiders) with five tackles and one sack in two games played. With fellow safety Usama Young on the injured reserve as well, it looks like it will be Brandian Ross getting starts at strong safety for the rest of the season. The Raiders also announced that they have signed defensive tackle Ricky Lumpkin to fill the empty roster spot. Lumpkin was originally signed to the Raiders practice squad on Nov. 20 after being waived by the Arizona Cardinals in September. The 6-foot-4, 306-pound defensive tackle played 44 games at the University of Kentucky and recorded 82 tackles, three sacks, 12 tackles for a loss and one fumble recovery. He spent the majority of the last two seasons on the Cardinals' practice squad. Originally published on Silver & Black Report on Dec. 12, 2013
The Oakland Raiders (4-9) return home after playing on the road their last weeks to take on the division-rival Kansas City Chiefs (10-3). The contest marks the beginning of a three-game season finale where the Raiders will face all three divisional foes, with the Chargers on the road in week 16 and the Denver Broncos at home in week 17. The Raiders are coming off their 12-consecutive loss in the East Coast Timezone after falling 37-27 to the New York Jets last week. The Chiefs are coming off a dominating performance, beating the Washington Redskins 45-10 on the road, ending their three-game skid after starting the season 9-0. One of the Chiefs' nine victories to begin the season came at the hands of the Raiders, as Dennis Allen and his team fell 24-7 at Arrowhead Stadium in week 6. The Raiders jumped out to the early lead in the week-six match-up when then starting quarterback Terrelle Pryor found wide receiver Denarius Moore on a slant for a 39-yard touchdown, taking the early 7-0 lead. But that would be the only points for the Raiders as the Chiefs' suffocating defense clamped down on Pryor and finished with nine sacks. But the Raiders have changed since their last match-up. The Raiders now are starting un-drafted rookie Matt McGloin at quarterback and Moore has been out the last few weeks with a shoulder injury. Moore has returned to practice this week but is questionable for the game as of now. Should Moore not be able to go, it will be wide receiver Andre Holmes that will step in again as he has done well in Moore's place. With Moore out the last three weeks, Homes has racked up 12 receptions for 231 yards. Jared Veldheer and the offensive line will have to find a way to keep the Chiefs defensive line off of McGloin, who has used his quick reads to limit the sacks taken since taking over the starting job. One thing in favor for the offensive line is that Chiefs linebacker Justin Houston is limited in practice with his elbow injury. The Chiefs defense is allowing the fourth-lowest points per game in the league (17.4) while having the best turnover margin (+15). There's no doubt that the Raiders need to value the football and not allow the Chiefs to get points off their defense, as they have been able to do so often this season. McGloin and the Raiders offense will look to get the passing game going against the Chiefs defense as they rank 19th in the league, giving up 244.0 passing yards per game. The Chiefs are better against the run, ranking 16th in the league while giving up 113.2 yards per game on the ground. The Raiders will get some relief in the backfield as it appears Rashad Jennings will be ready to play on Sunday following his concussion suffered during the Thanksgiving Day game. It still remains to be seen how the coaching staff will work fullback Marcel Reece into the game plan after he finished with a career-high 123 yards on just 19 carries last week against the Jets' top-ranked defense. On defense, the Raiders need to find a way to contain Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles, who leads the team with 1,162 yards and 10 touchdowns. Adding to his season, the versatile running back has also added 460 receiving yards and three touchdowns to his stellar season. The Raiders need to find a way to limit Charles' productivity better than they did in week six, when the former Longhorn finished with 128 total yards and two touchdowns. Defensive end Lamarr Houston is coming off two rough games and needs to find a way to dominate against the Chiefs in order to apply pressure on quarterback Alex Smith. Smith has turned into a consistent and reliable quarterback for the Chiefs and has thrown for 2,873 yards and 18 touchdowns with only six interceptions. The Raiders secondary will need to keep an eye on wide receiver Dwayne Bowe, who has been playing well as of late. Though he has just 49 receptions on the year, the veteran wide receiver has been known to cause fits for the Raiders and has a touchdown reception in three of the last four weeks. The Raiders secondary may get an added boost this week as starting strong safety Tyvon Branch may be able to play for the first time since injuring his ankle in week 2. Branch could be a boost to a Raiders defense that has struggled to get off the field on third downs as of late. The Chiefs also hold specialty weapon Dexter McCluster who has been stellar this season for the Chiefs special teams. McCluster has returned two punt returns for touchdowns this season, something the Raiders special teams unit must be aware of. Oakland will head down south for their final road game as they take on the San Diego Chargers next week. Also, everyone remember that U.S. Marines will be located around O.Co Coliseum collecting unwrapped toy donations as well as monetary donations as a part of Toys for Tots. They will stationed in Raiderville, as well as the West Side Plaza, near the BART entrance, and Gates A, B, C, and D, before kickoff. MILESTONES TO WATCH FOR: S Tyvon Branch • Needs one sack to tie No. 3 Albert Lewis (8.0, 1994-98) on the franchise’s career list among defensive backs. He enters the game with seven after recording one against Indianapolis in the season opener. DE Lamarr Houston • Needs three sacks to enter the top 20 in Raiders team history. K Sebastian Janikowski • Has now converted on 158-consecutive PAT attempts. • Needs just 27 points to reach 1,500 for his career. • Needs one game played to pass Gene Upshaw and move into sole possession of second place on the Raiders’ all-time games played list. RB Rashad Jennings • Has already surpassed his career-high with 588 rushing yards on the year. • Has already surpassed his career-high with 833 total yards on the year. RB Darren McFadden • Needs 315 rushing yards to eclipse 4,000 yards for his career. • Needs 470 receiving yards to eclipse 1,500 yards for his career. • Needs one rushing TD to move into sole posession of ninth place on the franchise’s career list, and two to tie No. 8 Charlie Smith (24, 1968-74). McFadden enters the game with 22. WR Denarius Moore • Needs 72 receiving yards to reach 2,000 for his career. QB Terrelle Pryor • Is currently first amongst all quarterbacks with 508 rushing yards. Pryor could eclipse the Raiders’ single-season mark of rushing yards by a quarterback with just 22 more yards. Rich Gannon set the mark in 2000 with 529. WR Rod Streater • Needs 129 receiving yards to reach 1,500 for his career and 213 for 1,000 this year. S Charles Woodson • Needs six interceptions to tie Ed Reed for first on the interceptions list among all active players with 62. • Needs one INT-TD to pass Rod Woodson for first on the all-time list with 12. • Needs one defensive touchdown to pass Rod Woodson and Darren Sharper for the most defensive touchdowns in NFL history with 13. Originally published on Silver & Black Report on Dec. 9, 2013
The Raiders got some good news on Monday learning that they will be getting running back Rashad Jennings back for the next game when the team hosts the Kansas City Chiefs, according to Vic Tafur of the SF Chronicle. 10-second update: Rashad Jennings passed his concussion test; Allen says McGloin starts last 3 games w/ spot duty for Pryor. Boom. #Raiders — Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) December 9, 2013 Jennings suffered a concussion after accidentally being kicked in the head against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day, making him unavailable against the Jets last Sunday. Fullback Marcel Reece started in his place, finishing with 123 yards and one touchdown on 19 carries. In Jennings' four games as the Raiders starting running back he has accumulated 346 rushing yards and three touchdowns as well as 74 receiving yards. Jennings totaled the most yards from the line of scrimmage in the NFL for the month of November with 596 total yards (448 rushing yards, 148 receiving yards). It will be interesting to see if the coaching staff will look to incorporate more runs from Reece after showing strong running ability against the Jets' first-ranked rush defense. Should Darren McFadden and Jeremy Stewart remain out with their respective injuries, Reece will likely be the back spelling Jennings from time to time, it just remains to be seen how much. Originally published on Silver & Black Report on Dec. 8, 2013 The Raiders streak of losses in the Eastern Time Zone was extended to 13 games with their 37-27 loss in the New York to the Jets on Sunday. Oakland's defense once again struggled and were unable to slow down a Jets offense that has struggled for much of the season. Geno Smith and the Jets offense were able to consistently convert on third down, converting 53 percent of their third-down attempts (7/13). The Raiders defense's inability to get off the field on third down assisted to the Jets scoring a season-high 37 points. The Jets got out to the early lead after receiving the opening kickoff, converting on a 41-yard field goal from Nick Folk to take the early 3-0 lead. The Raiders had a chance to capitalize on an early interception from Smith with a great diving catch from linebacker Kevin Burnett, but failed to get any points out of it as kicker Sebastian Janikowski's struggles continued with a missed field goal attempt. The Raiders defense couldn't come up with a stop on Smith's next drive as he was able to find Jeremy Kerley for a 25-yard touchdown pass to extend the lead to 10-0. The Raiders first points came in the second quarter when Janikowski redeemed himself and made a 41-yard field goal of his own to bring the Raiders back within one score. The drive was led by backup quarterback Terrelle Pryor who finished 2/5 for 20 yards and three rushes for four yards. Pryor would not return to the field the rest of the game. A key mishap for the Raiders occurred on special teams in the second quarter, which is unusual for a special teams unit that has been so strong this season. Already pinned back on their own 18-yard line, punter Marquette King had his punt blocked and returned for a touchdown by Antonio Allen. The score extended the Jets lead to 20-3 heading into halftime. With running backs Darren McFadden, Rashad Jennings and Jeremy Stewart all out with injuries, the Raiders turned to fullback Marcel Reece to handle the halfback duties. Reece provided a spark to the Raiders offense early in the second half as he outran the entire Jets defense to scamper a career-long 63-yards for a touchdown. Reece was solid all day, running the ball 19 times for 123 yards, another career-high, and the one touchdown. But the Raiders defense couldn't hold the momentum as Smith led the Jets back down the field quickly with a 10-play drive culminating in a eight-yard touchdown run by Smith on a read-option. The score extended the Jets lead to 27-10. The big plays continued for the Raiders as they answered with a quick strike, this time Matt McGloin thread the needle to find Rod Streater for a 48-yard touchdown. Streater led the Raiders in receiving with seven receptions for 130 yards and one touchdown. But that would be as close as the Raiders would get the entire game, down by 10. The problem remained with the Raiders defense, as they continuously failed to slow down Smith and the Jets offense. The Raiders did make a late run in the game when McGloin found tight end Mychal Rivera for a one-yard touchdown reception on fourth down, cutting the lead to 37-27 with only 2:24 remaining in the game. Janikowski then kicked a perfect onside kick but two Raiders collided going for the ball and Kevin Burnett had it slip away from him and the Jets recovered the ball. From there, the Jets were able to run the clock down giving McGloin little time and securing their 37-27 victory and handing the Raiders their 9th loss. Originally published on Silver & Black Report on Dec. 7, 2013
Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie announced Saturday that the team has singed cornerback Chance Casey, safety Shelton Johnson and linebacker Marshall McFadden to the active roster from the practice squad. Casey was originally signed by the Raiders in the offseason as an undrafted free agent before being a final-cut casualty and then signing with the Raiders practice squad. Casey appeared in 43 games (33 starts) while attending Baylor, accumulating 212 tackles, three interceptions, 18 passes defensed and three forced fumbles while playing at both safety and cornerback. Like Casey, Johnson was cut on Sept. 2 and signed to the practice squad shortly after. Johnson originally signed with the Raiders as an undrafted free agent as well, after starting two years at the University of Wisconsin. The 6-foot, 197-pound safety racked up 125 tackles, four interceptions, 12 passes defensed and one forced fumble in 46 games, with 23 starts. McFadden was signed to the Raiders practice squad on Sept. 2 after spending training camp with the Pittsburgh Steelers. McFadden started 49 games at South Carolina State, totaling 300 tackles, 30 tackles for a loss, 10 sacks, three interceptions, four forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries. McFadden gives the Raiders another pass rusher in defensive coordinator Jason Tarver's sack-by-committee scheme. In order to make room for the three new members, the Raiders have placed linebacker Kaluka Maiava (ribs/calf) and safety Usama Young (neck) on the injured reserve. The team also waived defensive lineman Brian Sanford. Young, in his first year with the Raiders, played in 12 games (one start) while also contributing on special teams. Young recorded 33 total tackles, 2.5 sacks, one interception and two passes defensed. Kaiava has been injured for much of the season but has appeared in nine games (one start) and recorded 25 tackles. |
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