Raiders look for 3rd straight home win with Bengals coming to town

sfgate.com photo: Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (17) is sacked by Oakland Raiders defensive end Clelin Ferrell during the second half of an NFL football game in Oakland, Calif., Thursday, Nov. 7, 2019.

By Joe Hawkes

SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — With back-to-back wins at home, the Raiders look to finish off their three-game home stand at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum with a win over the visiting Cincinnati Bengals as the two teams hook up for action in Week 11. This will be the first matchup between the two clubs since 2015, in a game that the Bengals won convincingly, 33-13 in Oakland.

Cincinnati currently holds a three-game winning streak over Oakland, with the Raiders last defeating the Bengals, 20-17, in Oakland back in 2009.

Kickoff for this battle in the AFC is at 1:25 p.m. PT and will be broadcast on CBS.

In Week 10, the Raiders defeated their AFC West rival, the Los Angeles Chargers, 26-24, to improve their record to 5-4. Oakland sealed their second-straight victory at home behind rookie running back Josh Jacobs’ 18-yard touchdown run in the final minute of regulation. Jacobs finished with 71 yards on 16 carries and three catches for 30 yards in the game.

In the process, Jacobs became just the 16th player in NFL history to rush for at least 800 yards in his first nine career games per Elias Sports Bureau. Currently, Jacobs has rushed for 811 yards this season. His seven rushing touchdowns are tied with Arthur Whittington for second-most by a rookie in franchise history.

Raiders quarterback Derek Carr recorded his 18th career fourth-quarter comeback, and his 19th career game-winning drive. Carr threw for 218 yards and one touchdown. On the Raiders’ final offensive drive of the game, Carr completed 6-of-8 passes for 57 yards that would setup Jacobs’ go-ahead touchdown.

But the real story of the game was the play of Oakland’s defense, who made life extremely difficult for Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers.

For the second-straight game, safety Karl Joseph would make the game-sealing play, intercepting Rivers in the final seconds of the game.

Safety Erik Harris recorded two interceptions for Oakland on the night in the first-quarter, which included a 56-yard pick-six that extended the Raiders’ lead to 10-0. It was Harris’ second pick-six of the season.

Oakland registered five sacks on Rivers, with rookie defensive end Clelin Ferrell posting a career-high 2.5 sacks, and 1.5 sacks by defensive end Benson Mayowa. Mayowa now has a career-high seven sacks.

Defensive end Maxx Crosby and defensive tackle Maurice Hurst each logged 0.5 sacks in the game.

Cincinnati (0-9) is coming off a 49-13 thrashing at the hands of their AFC North rival, the Baltimore Ravens in Week 10.

Rookie quarterback Ryan Finley made his debut for Cincinnati and had a game to forget.

Finley, who replaced franchise quarterback Andy Dalton after Dalton was benched during the team’s bye week, completed 16-of-30 passes for 167 yards, one touchdown and one interception that was returned 89 yards for a pick-six by Ravens cornerback Marcus Peters that made the score 28-3 midway through the second quarter.

The loss to the Ravens were the Bengals’ 11th-straight loss dating back to the last season, tying the longest two-season losing streak in club history per Elias Sports Bureau. They’re one loss away from matching the worst start in club history.

Following Sunday’s game, Oakland heads east to New York to take on the Jets at MetLife Stadium in Week 12, while the Bengals return home to face the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Raiders welcome division rival Chargers to the Coliseum for big primetime matchup

Photo credit: raiderswire.usatoday.com

By Joe Hawkes
SRS Contributor

After playing for the first time at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum since Week 2, the Oakland Raiders look to build upon their Week 9 victory over the visiting Detroit Lions when they host their division-rival the Los Angeles Chargers Thursday in primetime to kickoff Week 10 in the NFL.

Kickoff is set for 5:20 p.m. PT and will be televised on FOX as part of Thursday Night Football. This will be the first meeting between the two franchises this season, which will be the 119th edition in the all-time series.

The Raiders (4-4), climbed to the .500 mark after defeating the Lions, 31-24 behind quarterback Derek Carr, who engineered his 18th career game-winning drive in the contest. Carr, who had his third-consecutive game this season in which he’s thrown two touchdowns and have a passer rating of 115.0, found rookie wide receiver Hunter Renfrow in the end zone for the go-ahead touchdown with 2:04 left in the game.

Running back Josh Jacobs rushed for 120 yards and two touchdowns on the day. Jacobs, who became the first player in team history to be named NFL Offensive Player of the Month for October, is by far the leading candidate for Offensive Rookie of the Year by leading all rookies in rushing yards (740), touchdowns (6), runs of 20+ (5), and 40+yards (2).

In the game, Jacobs would surpass Marcus Allen for most rushing yards in a single season by a rookie in team history, topping Allen’s 697 set in 1982.

With Jacobs’ two scores and touchdowns each by Renfrow and rookie tight end Foster Moreau, it was the first time in team history that rookies have scored four touchdowns in one game offensively.

Defensively, cornerback Daryl Worley’s second quarter interception in the end zone changed the momentum of the game, leading to a touchdown by Oakland’s offense right before halftime.

But Karl Joseph made the biggest play of the game, breaking up a pass on fourth down that would’ve tied the game and forced overtime. Joseph would finish with six tackles.

The Chargers (4-5) are coming into Thursday night off the heels of a 26-11 win over the visiting Green Bay Packers at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif.

Quarterback Philip Rivers completed 21-of-28 passes for 294 yards, with the scoring provided by two touchdowns from running back Melvin Gordon (20 carries for 80 yards), and four field goals from kicker Michael Badgley.

Rivers has thrown 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions, but has thrown for an NFL-high 2,609 yards this season.

Third-year wide receiver Mike Williams logged his first career 100-yard game, catching three balls for 111 yards against the Packers.

Defensive ends Melvin Ingram and Joey Bosa was all over Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers, sacking the future Hall of Fame signal-caller three times (each player recorded 1.5 sacks).

Bosa, who is being mentioned as a possible Defensive Player of the Year candidate this season, is third in the NFL in sacks with 8.5.

Following Thursday’s game, Oakland ill return to action in Week 11 against the Cincinnati Bengals to finish up their three-game stretch at home, while the Chargers return to Los Angeles to face the Kansas City Chiefs before their Bye Week.

Takeaways from the Raiders’ win over the Lions

Photo credit: freep.com

By Joe Hawkes
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND, Calif. — The Raiders returned home from their whirlwind tour in which they logged over 20,000 miles with a gutsy, 31-24 victory over the visiting Detroit Lions on Sunday that pulled the team to the .500 mark at 4-4.

Quarterback Derek Carr threw a 9-yard touchdown pass to rookie wide receiver Hunter Renfrow with 2:05 left in the game, cementing Oakland’s win in the team’s first game at home in seven weeks.

Carr’s clutch throw to Renfrow for the win got the Raiders off on the right foot, as they enter a critical three-game homestand that will be key in Oakland’s playoff chances this season. The Raiders face the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday Night Football on a short week, then host the Cincinnati Bengals at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on Nov. 11.

Check out my takeaways from the Silver and Black’s win against the Lions:

Josh Jacobs is the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year without question

As much as Oakland’s win can be credited to its signal-caller (Carr completed 20-of-31 passes for 289 yards and 2 TDs), Jacobs’ performance was instrumental.

The rookie running back found gaping holes in Detroit’s defense, rushing for 120 yards and two scores on 28 carries. It was Jacobs’ third game this season in which he’s rushed for 120+ yards with 20+ carries.

With a 16-yard rush late in the first-half, Jacobs broke Marcus Allen’s franchise rookie record for rushing. Jacobs now has rushed for 740 yards and through eight games, breaking Allen’s mark of 697 set in the nine-game, strike-shortened 1982 season per Elias Sports Bureau.

Not only does Jacobs leads all rookies in rushing, but his six touchdowns and runs of 20+ yards (5) and 40+ yards (2) are tops among the group.

Raiders’ defense is opportunistic

Lions quarterback did have a big day against the Raiders’ suspect secondary, throwing for 406 yards and three touchdowns, but Oakland did capitalize on two Detroit turnovers in the first half to take a 17-14 lead.

Defensive tackle Maurice Hurst recovered a fumble deep inside Oakland’s territory after Stafford botched a handoff to running back JD McKissic on Detroit’s opening drive of the game. The Raiders would turn that into an 11-play, 68-yard drive in 5:32 that culminated in Jacobs’ first score of the game, a 2-yard run that put Oakland ahead 7-0.

After the Lions took a 14-10 lead following a 59-yard touchdown pass from Stafford to wide receiver Kenny Golladay, Stafford tried to hookup with Golladay again, but Raiders cornerback Daryl Worley made a terrific play on the football by intercepting Stafford in the end zone.

The Raiders would turn that takeaway into points, with Jacobs capping off a 12-play, 80-yard drive in 5:14 with his second score of the game from 3-yards out to put Oakland ahead 17-14 going into halftime.

For as much as the takeaways led to 14 points for Oakland, those weren’t the biggest plays in my book by the defense in the game.

With Detroit inches away from scoring and facing a fourth down, the Raiders defense looking to preserve a 31-24 lead, Karl Joseph’s pass breakup of the potential game-tying touchdown in the back of the end zone was the biggest play made by the defense on the day.

Quote of the game

“I love this place. It’s special. To come home in front of them and get a win, especially the way we did it. It would be nice to win something 40-0 some time. But when you win one like this, it does so many good things for a team.” – Derek Carr talking about the feeling he gets playing in Oakland in front of Raider Nation.

The Raiders are playing their final season in Oakland this year, before moving to their new 65,000-seat home, Allegiant Stadium, in Las Vegas in 2020.

Thursday night’s matchup against the Chargers (4-5) should make for an enticing game.

The Chargers will enter the game fresh off the heels of a 26-11 victory over the visiting Green Bay Packers at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, Calif.

Running back Melvin Gordon scored two touchdowns, and kicker Michael Badgely booted four field goals for the Chargers, who snapped a three-game home losing streak and handed the Packers (7-2) their second loss of the year.

Raiders battle Broncos on Christmas Eve in home finale at the Coliseum

Photo credit: broncoswire.usatoday.com

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — The Raiders return to the Oakland-Alameda Coliseum in what will be the team’s home finale to a rough 2019 season. The Silver and Black will host the Denver Broncos on Christmas Eve in a AFC West matchup on Monday Night Football with the kickoff set for 5:15 p.m. PT on ESPN.

Oakland holds a 62-52-2 all-time record against the Broncos, with the Raiders looking to make it three in a row over Denver at home.

Last week, the Raiders (3-11) traveled to Cincinnati to take on the Bengals, but lost 30-16 at Paul Brown Stadium in Week 15.

Raiders quarterback Derek Carr continued to move up the franchise record book. Carr passed Rich Gannon for the most consecutive pass attempts without throwing an interception against the Bengals. Now sitting at 299 attempts, bested Gannon’s mark of 277 set back in 2001.

In fact, Carr hasn’t thrown an interception in nine-straight games after throwing for 263 yards on 21-of-38 passes and one touchdown. Through 14 games, Carr has 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions. Entering Monday night’s game with 3,697 passing yards, Carr is 303 yards shy from his first 4,000-yard passing season.

Wide receiver Jordy Nelson led the Raiders with six catches for 88 yards.

Lee Smith, who is better known for his blocking, has been more of a scorer in recent weeks, hauling in a touchdown for the third-straight game.

Defensively, safety Karl Joseph led the team with eight tackles (six solo) and his first sack of the season. Fellow safety Erik Harris recorded his first-career interception.

The Broncos (6-8) enter Week 16 losing to the Cleveland Browns 17-16 at home last Saturday. The slim loss eliminated Denver from playoff contention in the AFC, and puts them one loss away from back-to-back losing seasons. Denver finished 5-11 in 2017.

Denver is looking to complete the season sweep over Oakland, after defeating the Raiders 20-19 at Denver Stadium at Mile High in Week 2. The Broncos rallied from a 12-point second-half deficit, capped off by kicker Brandon McManus’ 36-yard game-winning field goal just inside the right upright with 6 seconds to play.

Broncos rookie running back Phillip Lindsay, who was named to the AFC Pro Bowl team on Tuesday, rushed for 107 yards on 14 carries against the Raiders in Week 2.

On the season, Lindsay has rushed for 991 yards to go along with nine touchdowns on 182 carries in 14 games (seven starts) for the Broncos.

Linebacker Von Miller continues to be a terror on defense. The former Defensive Player of the Year leads the the team with 14.5 sacks and four forced fumbles, and was voted to his eighth Pro Bowl team. Fellow linebacker Bradley Chubb is second on the Broncos with 12.0 sacks and was named an alternate to the Pro Bowl.

Chubb, the Broncos’ top pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, is 2.5 sacks away from tying Jevon Kearse’s (14.5) NFL record for rookies, set in 1999 with the Tennessee Titans.

Raiders travel to the East Coast to face the Ravens

Photo credit: reviewjournal.com

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — The Raiders hit the road once again as they will travel East to take on a tough Baltimore Ravens team to close out Thanksgiving Weekend. The Week 12 matchup will mark the fourth consecutive year that the two teams have clashed, with Oakland winning two of the last three contests, including a thrilling 28-27 victory in 2016 at M&T Bank Stadium. Baltimore won last year’s meeting 30-17 in Oakland.

Kickoff for the 11th meeting is this Sunday, Nov. 25 at 10:00 a.m. PT. The Ravens lead the all-time series, 7-3.

Last week, the Raiders (2-8) defeated the Arizona Cardinals 23-21 at State Farm Stadium.

Raiders quarterback Derek Carr earned his 15th career fourth quarter comeback, engineering an impressive 9-play, 63-yard drive in the final minutes of the game, capped off by rookie kicker Daniel Carlson’s 35-yard game-winning field goal through the uprights as time expired.

The win snapped Oakland’s five-game losing streak and more importantly, shinned a little light on what has been a dark season for the Silver and Black with the losses mounting up week after week.

Carr finished the game completing 19-of-31 passes for 191 yards and two touchdowns and no interceptions with a 100.6 passer rating. His two touchdowns against the Cardinals moved him past Rich Gannon (114) for third on the club’s all-time list with 115, trailing only Daryle Lamonica (148) and Ken Stabler (150).

For Carlson, his three made field goals on the day from 49 (career-long), 21, and 35 yards (first career game-winner) earned him AFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors. His 11 points (two made extra points) were also a career-high and were the most among kickers in the AFC in Week 11.

Defensively, cornerback Gareon Conley and safety Karl Joseph each recorded an interception that led to touchdowns on ensuing drives, and rookie defensive tackle Maurice Hurst tallied a sack for the second consecutive week, bringing his total to four on the season and elevating him to second among rookie defenders in the NFL.

After coming of their bye week, the Ravens defeated their AFC North rivals, the Cincinnati Bengals 24-21 in Week 11 at M&T Bank Stadium snapping their three-game losing streak.

Baltimore’s offense was paced by two rookies in quarterback Lamar Jackson and running back Gus Edwards.

Jackson did throw one interception in the game, but showed why he was a dual-threat quarterback at Louisville, completing 13-of-19 passes for 150 yards and rushing for 119 yards on 26 carries (team-high) in his first career start in place of franchise quarterback Joe Flacco. Flacco was inactive for last week’s game due to a injured hip.

Edwards, an undrafted rookie from Rutgers University, rushed for a career-high 115 yards on 17 carries and one touchdown.

Following Sunday’s game, the Raiders will return home for two weeks to take on two first-place teams in the AFC, as they will host their AFC West rivals the Kansas City Chiefs (9-2) in Week 13, and the Pittsburgh Steelers (7-2-1) in Week 14.

The Ravens (5-5) who trail the Steelers in the AFC North, hit the road for back-to-back games against the Atlanta Falcons (4-6) in Week 13 and the Chiefs in Week 14.

Oakland Raiders-Jacksonville Jaguars preview: Raiders hit the road for Jacksonville

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
Sports Radio Service Writer

AP file photo: Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr looks for some help out there in last Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs

OAKLAND, Calif — Looking to get back to winning football, the Raiders begin a two-game trip through the Sunshine State with a stop in Jacksonville Sunday to take on the Jaguars at EverBank Field in Week 7 action.

It’s the Raiders second game against the AFC South this season. Oakland derailed the Tennessee Titans 17-10 in Nashville in Week 3.

Kickoff is set for 10:00 a.m. PT in Oakland, 1:00 p.m. ET.

Oakland (4-2) were tripped up by Kansas City 26-10 last Sunday in a rainy, muddy game at the Oakland Coliseum that dropped the Raiders to 1-2 at home on the season. It was the first time this season that these two AFC West rivals faced each other.

Quarterback Derek Carr threw for 225 yards on 22-of-34 passing with one touchdown and one interception for Oakland, who were held scoreless in the second half.

Carr has thrown for 1,608 yards, 12 touchdowns, and just three interceptions in six games for Oakland this year.

Wide receiver Amari Cooper finished with a career-high 10 catches for 129 yards.

Cooper led all Raiders wide receivers with 14 targets, while fellow wide receiver Andre Holmes hauled in his second touchdown catch of the season on the Raiders’ opening drive of the game.

Oakland’s running game was powered by rookie DeAndre Washington, who led the Raiders with 49 yards rushing. The Raiders played without starter Latavius Murray, who missed his second straight game with a toe injury.

On defense, the Raiders allowed 406 total yards to the Chiefs Sunday. Oakland’s defense ranks 32nd in the NFL, allowing 444.8 yards per game after giving up 500+ yards in the team’s first two games of the season.

Rookie safety Karl Joseph led Oakland with 11 tackles (seven solo) and defensive end Khalil Mack registered his second sack of the season, sacking Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith in the first quarter that forced a punt.

Jacksonville (2-3) scored 14 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to take down the Chicago Bears 17-16 at Soldier Field last week.

Quarterback Blake Bortles, who was drafted in the same class as Carr in 2014 out of Central Florida, completed 20-of-33 passes for 271 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

Bortles, who threw a career-high 4,428 yards, 35 touchdowns, and 18 interceptions in 2015, has thrown for 1,321 yards, eight touchdowns, and seven interceptions this season.

Oakland’s much maligned secondary could have their hands full with Jacksonville’s wide receivers, most notably Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns.

After exploding in 2015 with 90 catches for 1,400 yards and 14 touchdowns (all team-highs), Robinson is second on Jacksonville with 287 receiving yards and leads the team with three touchdowns on 24 catches.

Hurns, who is first on the team with 300 receiving yards, has just one touchdown through five games for Jacksonville after hauling in 64 catches for 1,031 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2015.

Jacksonville has a very aggressive defense led by linebackers Paul Posluszny and Telvin Smith. The duo have combined for 86 tackles this season, which are second in the league behind Buffalo linebacker duo of Zach Brown and Preston Brown’s (no relation) 121 tackles.

Defensive end Yannick Ngakoue leads all rookies with four sacks this season and will be a test for Oakland’s stout offensive line.

Following Sunday’s game, the Raiders will stay in Florida in preparation for their Week 8 meeting at Tampa against the Buccaneers, before returning home for their big showdown with the Denver Broncos on Sunday Night Football in Week 9 before their bye week.

Baltimore will be Oakland’s stiffest test of the season

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
Sports Radio Service Writer

AP file photo: Oakland Raider quarterback Derek Carr (4) during an audible against the Tennessee Titans Sun Sep 25th will throw against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday

OAKLAND, Calif — With all due respect to the Atlanta Falcons, who gave Oakland their only loss on the young season: you are still a suspect team with an inconsistent pass rush and a quarterback in Matt Ryan that is a great fantasy football league stat filler, not a championship quarterback.

Or the New Orleans Saints and the Tennessee Titans, whom Oakland has defeated this season.

Oakland faces their toughest test yet of the season, against Ravens team in Baltimore Sunday  in Week 4 in a game that could have a significant determine playoff seeding in the AFC.

Sunday’s game will showcase the NFL’s second-ranked offense in the Raiders, who are averaging 436 yards and 26.7 points per game (Atlanta leads the NFL, averaging 448 yards and 34.7 points per game), against Baltimore, who are just allowing 254.3 yards and 14.7 points game, second behind Seattle’s 250.3 yards and 12.3 points per game.

Raiders starting quarterback Derek Carr lit up a depleted Ravens’ defense in the two team’s match up last season in Oakland, throwing for a career-high 351 yards on 30-of-46 passes, three touchdowns and one interception in the Raiders’ 37-33 victory.

Carr’s 12-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Seth Roberts with 26 seconds left in the game capped off a 9-play, 80-yard drive after Carr went 7-of-9 on the final drive.

Last week, Carr completed 21-of-35 for 249 yards, one touchdown, and one interception leading the Raiders (2-1) to a 17-10 victory in Nashville, their second road win of the season.

For the season, Carr has thrown for 867 yards, five touchdowns, and one interception.

Oakland’s ground game racked up 123 yards, with starting running back Latavius Murray scoring his third rushing touchdown on the season.

Oakland’s 32nd ranked defense, who gave up 500 yards of total offense in back-to-back games to start the season, held Tennessee to 393 yards.

Rookie safety Karl Joseph, making his first career start, led the Raiders with 10 tackles (4 assisted), and cornerback Sean Smith recorded his first interception as a Raider.

The Ravens are coming off a tight, 19-17, road victory in Jacksonville Sunday, thanks to a Justin Tucker 54-yard field goal with 1:02 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Baltimore is off to it’s third 3-0 start in franchise history, their first since 2009.

Baltimore starting quarterback Joe Flacco is one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL entering his ninth season, already with six 3,000-yard passing seasons, a 10-5 playoff record, and a Super Bowl ring.

Even though Flacco has passed for 774 yards, he’s been uneven with the football, throwing three touchdowns and four interceptions, two against a young Jaguars’ defense last week.

However, Flacco was one pass away for tying an NFL record for consecutive completions in a game (22), but did break his own franchise record of 14 straight completions in a game, which he set in 2009.

Oakland should have their hands full with wide receiver Mike Wallace, who signed with Baltimore during the offseason.

Wallace, who is one of the more dangerous deep-ball receivers in the NFL, has caught all of Baltimore’s receiving touchdowns.

On the season, Wallace has 10 catches for 166 yards, while fellow wide receiver Steve Smith Sr. is second on the team (behind tight end Dennis Pitta’s 18 catches), with 16.

Smith Sr. registered 10 catches for 150 yards last year against Oakland and can go off in a heartbeat, if Oakland doesn’t loses track of him.

Baltimore’s defense were relentless in Week 3 against Jacksonville, holding the Jaguars to just 216 total yards. The Ravens held Jacksonville to just 2.3 yards per rush on 21 carries for 48 yards.

Outside linebacker Terrell Suggs, now in his 14th year with Baltimore, is tied for the team lead in sacks with defensive tackle Timmy Jernigan with three.

Jernigan should see plenty of former Ravens’ offensive lineman Kelechi Osemele, who returns to Baltimore for the first time after signing a five-year, $58.5 million deal with Oakland in the offseason. Osemele spent his first four seasons with the Ravens from 2012-15.

Oakland, having to make the near five-hour cross-country flight, looks to improve on a 1-16 record in their last 17 games in the Eastern time zone with a victory.

Kickoff is at 1:05 p.m. ET.