Game Grades: vs Detroit Lions
I’ve decided to grade out each Raider game this season. Grades will be posted no less than 24 hours after the completion of each game, so that I (hopefully) eliminate emotion from the grading. It’s difficult to be impartial immediately after a win or loss, because emotion is sure to cloud my judgment. Sunday’s 36-21 loss was a tough one to take on the chin, so I thought better of trying to dole out my opinions right away.
Passing Game: C+
Josh McCown completed 30 of 40 passes for 313 yards and 2 TDs, but the turnovers initiated by the passing game were atrocious. 2 picks and 3 fumbles by McCown alone killed the Raiders. Part of the 4th quarter implosion was McCown’s fault, but the offensive line didn’t help by allowing Detroit’s defensive line to reek havoc throughout the game. Eliminate the turnovers and this game turns out much differently.
Running Game: C
Lamont Jordan‘s 70 yards on 15 carries (and a TD) wasn’t the worst thing in the world, but the Raiders never established any dominance on the ground. Falling behind 17-0 forced an aerial response, but the Raiders needed more from Jordan and Justin Fargas earlier in the game. Every time the Raiders busted a decent run, they’d follow it up with a goose egg. The highlight of the afternoon was Jordan’s 12-yard scamper for the Raiders 2nd TD of the day.
Pass Defense: F
Lions QB Jon Kitna had all day to pick the Raiders apart. Only a Kirk Morrison interception in the end zone kept the game within reach in the 1st half. The Raiders only sacked Kitna twice, for a paltry 5 yards, and the lack of pressure was none more evident than on Shaun McDonald’s TD catch late in the game. The secondary was no better, allowing McDonald to roam free in the end zone on the play. Of course, Kitna & McDonald don’t even get a chance to make that play if Hiram Eugene wraps up McDonald on the previous play, a back breaking 9-yard 3rd down conversion at midfield. That kept the game winning drive alive.
Run Defense: B-
Take away Tatum Bell’s meaningless 14-yard TD at the end of the game and the Raiders run defense held the Lions to 94 yards on the ground. 18 rushing attempts (not counting 3 by Kitna) netted the Lions 91 yards. The Lions only converted 4 rushing first-downs. The one glaring blemish was Bell’s 24-yard scamper midway through the 2nd quarter, setting up Kitna’s TD pass to Roy Williams for Detroit’s first score of the game.
Special Teams: F
Yes, Sebastian Janikowski’s first field goal attempt was blocked, but the muffs on his 2nd & 3rd attempts turned out to haunt the Raiders. The closest Janikowski came to putting a ball through the uprights was on a kickoff after Justin Griffith’s touchdown the put the Raiders up 21-20. The Raiders kick coverage allowed an 18-yard punt return, which setup Detroit’s first TD and a 33-yard kickoff return at the end of the 3rd quarter.
Coaching: C-
You could tell things were a little different than last year when the Raiders opened the game with a 5-receiver set and an empty backfield. That play resulted in a 13-yard pass completion to Ronald Curry, but then the Raiders went into an offensive shell (no pun intended). Head coach Lane Kiffin and offensive coordinator Greg Knapp didn’t open things up until the 3rd quarter, but once they did the Raiders moved the ball. Coaching didn’t cost the Raiders the game, execution did.
Intangibles: C
The Raiders came together as a team after Griffith’s TD, showing emotion that hasn’t been seen at the Coliseum in a while. The Raiders moved the ball when they had to, which is a far cry from last season. We’ll see if the defensive lapses were an anomaly or not.
Officiating: B-
Sad that I even have to include an officiating category, buy officiating has played such a large part of most Raider contests that I thought it was necessary. All in all, I thought the officiating was ok. The one play that raised my ire was an incident late in the contest, when a Lions offensive lineman took a cheap shot at a Raider defender with 6 minutes to play in the contest and no flag was thrown (even though the Raiders were penalized for the exact same thing earlier in the game). The officials issued a “sideline warning” because half the Raider coaching staff was standing on the field of play screaming for a flag.
Passing Game: C+
Josh McCown completed 30 of 40 passes for 313 yards and 2 TDs, but the turnovers initiated by the passing game were atrocious. 2 picks and 3 fumbles by McCown alone killed the Raiders. Part of the 4th quarter implosion was McCown’s fault, but the offensive line didn’t help by allowing Detroit’s defensive line to reek havoc throughout the game. Eliminate the turnovers and this game turns out much differently.
Running Game: C
Lamont Jordan‘s 70 yards on 15 carries (and a TD) wasn’t the worst thing in the world, but the Raiders never established any dominance on the ground. Falling behind 17-0 forced an aerial response, but the Raiders needed more from Jordan and Justin Fargas earlier in the game. Every time the Raiders busted a decent run, they’d follow it up with a goose egg. The highlight of the afternoon was Jordan’s 12-yard scamper for the Raiders 2nd TD of the day.
Pass Defense: F
Lions QB Jon Kitna had all day to pick the Raiders apart. Only a Kirk Morrison interception in the end zone kept the game within reach in the 1st half. The Raiders only sacked Kitna twice, for a paltry 5 yards, and the lack of pressure was none more evident than on Shaun McDonald’s TD catch late in the game. The secondary was no better, allowing McDonald to roam free in the end zone on the play. Of course, Kitna & McDonald don’t even get a chance to make that play if Hiram Eugene wraps up McDonald on the previous play, a back breaking 9-yard 3rd down conversion at midfield. That kept the game winning drive alive.
Run Defense: B-
Take away Tatum Bell’s meaningless 14-yard TD at the end of the game and the Raiders run defense held the Lions to 94 yards on the ground. 18 rushing attempts (not counting 3 by Kitna) netted the Lions 91 yards. The Lions only converted 4 rushing first-downs. The one glaring blemish was Bell’s 24-yard scamper midway through the 2nd quarter, setting up Kitna’s TD pass to Roy Williams for Detroit’s first score of the game.
Special Teams: F
Yes, Sebastian Janikowski’s first field goal attempt was blocked, but the muffs on his 2nd & 3rd attempts turned out to haunt the Raiders. The closest Janikowski came to putting a ball through the uprights was on a kickoff after Justin Griffith’s touchdown the put the Raiders up 21-20. The Raiders kick coverage allowed an 18-yard punt return, which setup Detroit’s first TD and a 33-yard kickoff return at the end of the 3rd quarter.
Coaching: C-
You could tell things were a little different than last year when the Raiders opened the game with a 5-receiver set and an empty backfield. That play resulted in a 13-yard pass completion to Ronald Curry, but then the Raiders went into an offensive shell (no pun intended). Head coach Lane Kiffin and offensive coordinator Greg Knapp didn’t open things up until the 3rd quarter, but once they did the Raiders moved the ball. Coaching didn’t cost the Raiders the game, execution did.
Intangibles: C
The Raiders came together as a team after Griffith’s TD, showing emotion that hasn’t been seen at the Coliseum in a while. The Raiders moved the ball when they had to, which is a far cry from last season. We’ll see if the defensive lapses were an anomaly or not.
Officiating: B-
Sad that I even have to include an officiating category, buy officiating has played such a large part of most Raider contests that I thought it was necessary. All in all, I thought the officiating was ok. The one play that raised my ire was an incident late in the contest, when a Lions offensive lineman took a cheap shot at a Raider defender with 6 minutes to play in the contest and no flag was thrown (even though the Raiders were penalized for the exact same thing earlier in the game). The officials issued a “sideline warning” because half the Raider coaching staff was standing on the field of play screaming for a flag.
Labels: Detroit Lions, Game Grades
posted by Mike at
10:23 PM
3 Comments:
I agree with everything you said, accept for the OL play. I've watched the game twice now. Did I miss something? McCown seemed to have an aweful lot of time to throw the ball and the running lanes where opening. Lamont (being Lamont) missed a few holes in that line (as always). He may have had about 15 or 20 more yards. Considering they only gave up 3 sacks (and I know that last one sucked, but that was cuz of Lamonts "o'lay" block), I'd have to say they had a pretty solid game.
There's one thing that you left out of the officiating grade....the fact that the Raiders were called for a false start late in the 3rd quarter when McCown attempted a QB sneak on 3rd and inches. I've seen several other teams do this with no problem or penalties. That would knock the officiating grade down to 'bout a C- IMO. Otherwise, great article.
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