Raiders: Risers and fallers from the 15-13 win over the Miami Dolphins
The Las Vegas Raiders beat the Miami Dolphins 15-13 to get their third win of the preseason. Here are the risers and fallers from the Raiders' third preseason game of the year against the Miami Dolphins. Risers RB Brittain Brown The Raiders were able to run the ball a bit better than the two games […]
The Las Vegas Raiders beat the Miami Dolphins 15-13 to get their third win of the preseason.
Here are the risers and fallers from the Raiders' third preseason game of the year against the Miami Dolphins.
Risers
RB Brittain Brown
The Raiders were able to run the ball a bit better than the two games prior, and that is because of Brown.
Brown was very good at finding the gaps the offensive line produced, even if it wasn't much. His nine carries for 70 yards led all the running backs on the ground.
His biggest run came in the fourth quarter with a minute left. It's what sealed the win for the Raiders. Brown was easily a key part of the win over the Dolphins.
CB Sam Webb
We haven't heard a ton about Webb in training camp, good or bad. However, on Saturday against the Dolphins, we heard his name a lot.
Webb laid a big hit on Myles Gaskin to force a fumble, and had the whistle not been blown, he'd have a touchdown as well. The rookie cornerback also led the team with six tackles.
Webb won't start for the Raiders during the regular season, barring any injuries of course, but he is making a strong case for a depth spot.
DE Tashawn Bower
The 27-year-old defensive end had a very good game against the Dolphins on Saturday. He might have had the best game on defense, if we are being honest.
Bower finished with five total tackles, one sack, and two tackles for a loss. It's safe to say he was filling up the stat sheet.
Bower hasn't had the best NFL career thus far, in terms of production. However, he is showing that he can contribute to this team if they needed him.
Fallers
Passing game
The passing game wasn't great, to say the least. The Raiders finished with 145 passing yards to the Dolphins' 303. Yeah, they still got the win, but it's something to keep on notice.
McDaniels is going to run the same offense with the backups as he does with the starters, so to see the game script get called the way it did can be concerning. The Raiders had nine receivers catch a pass, and only had four receivers catch more than two passes. Not to mention the awful averages of 6.2 yards per pass attempt and 9.1 yards per completion.
The Raiders finished with seven passing first downs to the Dolphins' 14. During the regular season, they won't win games playing that conservatively. The league has changed.
Pass rush
The pass rush was nearly non-existent. This is sad because we know this team can get to the quarterback. Yes, this is the backup defense, but the depth of the defensive line matters.
The Raiders defense did put some pressure on the quarterback, but it couldn't bring them down outside the one sack. The silver and black also only had three quarterback hits on the day. This is something that needs to be better if the Raiders want to compete late into the regular season.
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