The Las Vegas Raiders got dragged up and down the field Saturday in Atlanta. After putting up an inspirational performance against the Kansas City Chiefs, they got wiped by one of the worst teams in football.
On top of that, the Atlanta Falcons played without their stars Julio Jones & Todd Gurley, and faced an offense that scored 30+ points three straight games. However, they ended up with their highest scoring game of the year and held the Raiders to their lowest score of season.
For a team that has been considered a potential dark horse to make the playoffs, this loss was a massive setback not just to this season, but to the Raiders’ playoff hopes, as it dropped them down to 6-5. It was overall an abysmal day.
Offense:
Las Vegas:
The Raiders’ offense just sputtered today and every time they had an opportunity they either fumbled the ball or threw an interception, to give the ball right back to the Falcons. This was the sequence of the first half: Turnover on downs, fumble, punt, field goal, punt, fumble. It was an utter disaster.
While Carr is at fault for the interceptions, the majority of the blame lies in the Raiders’ offensive line. The offensive line was just poor, forcing Carr into making decisions under pressure. They gave up five sacks to a team that had the 29th rated defense in the NFL going into the game.
Atlanta:
Just weeks after firing head coach Dan Quinn, Atlanta scored their highest number of points all season, dropping 43 on the heads of a team that was called by some a possible Super Bowl Contender. Not only did the Falcons run up the score, but they took their time and methodically made their way down the field, racking up 23 first downs, running 72 plays and taking almost 35 minutes to do so. Matt Ryan only threw for 179 yards on the day, but that didn’t even matter because they had a decent rushing day with 125 yards, and has a defense that scores on its own. Everything else is merely icing on the cake. They also only had one turnover on the day as well.
Defense
Las Vegas :
The Las Vegas Raiders’ defense wasn’t really that bad at all. The defense only gave up 304 yards, and while they had some bone-head penalties, it wasn’t the defense that cost them the game, it was the offense just giving away possessions via turnovers, forcing the defense to work itself to the bone trying to defend an offense that seemed to find itself amidst a tumultuous season. .
Atlanta:
The Atlanta Falcons’ defense was easily the best it looked all season, and it was stingy today, locking up the Raiders to only 243 yards on the day, and 13 first downs. They forced the Raiders into five turnovers and looked nothing like the 29th rated defense in the NFL. They were stingy, and this defense held the Raiders to a seaosn-low six points, something not even the Kansas City Chiefs were able to do.
Final Thoughts
The Las Vegas Raiders were terrible this game, and this is not the way a playoff team should be playing against a bottom feeding team, especially when the Raiders really needed this win to stay in the playoff conversation. They had 11 penalties, 141 penalty yards, five turnovers, five sacks and they allowed 43 points, in a game they needed to win. It will be interesting to see how the Raiders come back from this bad game, or if this game changes the course of the season for the team.