The defense can't stop anybody
Seantrel Henderson Jersey White , even a third-string, undrafted free agent quarterback making his NFL debut.The banged-up offensive line is providing no
protection for Derek Carr, leaving coach Jon Gruden so concerned about his
quarterback's health that he was unwilling to call any down-field passes.The
rookie punter is in a major rut, unable to flip the field with his kicks.The
problems for the Oakland Raiders right now run deep and they were all exposed in
a 34-3 loss to the San Francisco 49ers that was the most lopsided of Gruden's 12
years as an NFL head coach.The play that revealed the most issues might have
been a 52-yard touchdown run by Raheem Mostert that made it 31-3 in the third
quarter on Thursday night that featured several players appearing to play at
less than top speed."I didn't have any problem at all with the effort," Gruden
said. "I think what I had a big problem with is we had two guys in the same gap
and we got outflanked immediately and their back was faster than I think we
anticipated. That was my big problem with the long run. Once again, defensively
I think we gave up six plays for 240 yards. Six plays yielded 240 yards. That
cannot happen and it continues to be a big part of our problem. We have to fix
it."Right now, the Raiders (1-7) haven't been able to fix much of anything and
are getting worse by the week. Oakland has lost four straight games, getting
outscored by 85 points in the span.The defense is allowing 6.76 yards per play,
the worst by any team through eight games since the 1970 merger. The Raiders
have allowed the second-most points as a franchise through eight games
(252)
Womens J.J. Watt Jersey , are tied for the second-fewest takeaways (6) and have the fewest sacks (7). Oakland has also allowed opponents to have a 113.9 passer
rating, a mark that only one team has ever been worse than over a full
season.Even Nick Mullens managed to pick apart the defense in his NFL debut,
joining Hall of Famers Fran Tarkenton and Jim Kelly as the only quarterbacks to
throw for at least 250 yards and three TDs with no interceptions in their first
career game.Those struggles have led to some heated sideline conversations
between Gruden and defensive coordinator Paul Guenther, who still has the
confidence of his head coach."I'm sure emotions get caught on tape sometimes
but, there's not a better coach I know than Paul Guenther," Gruden said.
"There's not a better friend that I have than Paul Guenther. We're going to
argue and jaw, probably tonight, deep into the night over a lot of things. I'll
see if we can video footage for you."The offense is dealing with its own woes as
rookie left tackle Kolton Miller has been in and out of the lineup with a knee
injury, left guard Kelechi Osemele re-injured his knee Thursday after missing
the previous three games
Womens Alfred Blue Jersey , backup left guard Jon Feliciano is dealing with a rib injury and rookie right tackle Brandon Parker has struggled since
taking over for the injured Donald Penn.The situation got so bad Thursday when
Miller was forced to leave that Osemele had to move to left tackle after not
practicing there all season.Osemele and Miller are being evaluated and could
miss some time so the Raiders brought back former draft pick David Sharpe on
Friday to take the place of tackle T.J. Clemmings, who is on injured
reserve.Oakland allowed eight sacks against San Francisco and Gruden pulled Carr
to protect his health."Last night I was concerned," he said. "Last night we
didn't just have a couple of injuries, we were decimated and had guys playing
positions that they had never really practiced. That was uncommon for any game
I've ever called and I've called a lot of games. I've broadcast some games and I
haven't seen that."Even the rookie punter is struggling. Oakland used a
fifth-round pick on Johnny Townsend, who has struggled all season. His 25-yard
punt two weeks ago set up Indianapolis' go-ahead score and he had a 23-yarder
against San Francisco.Townsend is last in the NFL in gross punting average (41.9
yards) and has the second-lowest percentage of punts downed inside the 20 (18.8
percent)."I think he's overthinking some things a little bit," Gruden said.
"Directional punting, putting the ball between the numbers to the side line to
the right, to the left, getting it off quicker
Womens D.J. Reader Jersey , whatever it may be. I make no excuses for Townsend, but I will say this, I have seen him bomb it. I have seen him be a
difference maker and I am confident it's in our near future."Houston Texans
News: October 9, 2018 Houston Texans NewsTexans rookie Keke Coutee ‘mastering
this offense’ (Houston Chronicle)Bill O’Brien on Texans’ Jadeveon Clowney: ‘He’s
a violent player’ (Houston Chronicle)Texans coach Bill O’Brien on Deshaun
Watson’s hits: ‘Not a sustainable way to play’ (Houston Chronicle)Texans waiting
for word on Kayvon Webster’s injury (Houston Chronicle)Alfred Blue fills in
capably for Texans (Houston Chronicle)NFL NewsEagles RB Jay Ajayi done for
season with torn ACL (NFL.com)Jerry on Cowboys punting in OT: ‘It’s time for
risks’ (NFL.com)Giants will part ways with OT Flowers by Tuesday
(NFL.com)Tomlin: Certain penalties in Steelers victory a joke (NFL.com)Adrian
Peterson: I could be ‘beneficial’ for Vikings (NFL.com)Rams convinced McVay to
go for it on fourth down (NFL.com)Matt Ryan has X-ray on foot, will play versus
Bucs (NFL.com)Fournette (hamstring) to miss Jaguars vs. Cowboys (NFL.com)Broncos
cut Marquette King after placing him on IR (NFL.com)Houston & Collegiate
SportsMichael Carter-Williams’ early success in new role has surprised (The
Dream Shake)Astros sweep way past Indians to move on to ALCS (Houston
Chronicle)Houston staple Bart Enis out at AT&T SportsNet Southwest (Houston
Chronicle)
