Week 12 - OAKLAND @ Tennessee - Nov 29
Posted: Sun Nov 29, 2015 3:39 pm
Keys to the Game
WEATHER - Bring your ponchos people. Drizzles and showers are expected all day in Nashville with a temp of 60F and little wind. The field is open air so it gonna be a day when ball security is important and the deep ball may not be an option if the conditions get too bad.
Strength vs Strength - Our Oline has quietly put together a VERY good year. We rank 2nd in Pass blocking, giving up only 10 sacks in 11 games. We are 11th in run blocking . I give a lot of create to Reggie, JDR, Musgrave, Mike Tice and Rodney Hudson for the huge improvement. If it wasn't for Howard's flags and Webb's overall lapse this line could be in the argument for best in the league. Hudson will once again miss this week with a same ankle injury that has slowed him for the last 2 weeks.
The Titan's strength is their front 7. They are 7th in run defense and 11th in pass rush so far this year. They are led by OLB/DE Brian Orakpo and NT Jurell Casey. Both players are stout vs the have 7 and 5 sacks respectively. They have only given up 300 yrds once this year. They will most likely be without starting LOLB Derrick Morgan but former Raider draft pick David Bass has played well in replacement of him this year.
Whoever controls the line of scrimmage will win this game. Without Hudson we need to impose our will early and not let them breathe after our initial punch to the gut. Look for Musgrave to run at this group early with powers, traps, dive and counters with Murray and Olewale to get them off balance and then to really open up the passing game. We need a strong offensive showing to rebound from last weeks disappointment.
Get after Mariota - Most think of Mariota as a running quarterback, but he's not. He's a pocket passer who has the ability to run. If you needed proof, you just needed to watch last week's game against the Jaguars when he had his first rushing touchdown of the season. It went for 23 yards and was his longest run of the season. It doesn't help when the opposing defenses are able to focus on stopping him because the Titans have no running game to speak of. Autry, Mayowa and Mcgee all played well last week on the line and M.Smith and Heeney both came away with a sack but Mack and Edwards need to lead the charge provide consistent pressure and we'll have a good shot at containing this offense.
COOP - Early in the season, Amari Cooper was on fire. Lately he has cooled off considerably, including last week when he had more drops (2) than catches (1). The Raiders need his explosiveness to get open and then get downfield. Oh, and be sure and catch the ball inbetween. He has ten drops this season which is tied for second most in the league. When he's been great, he's been elite and at one time led the league in yards after catch. However, the key part of that statement is CATCH. Gotta get those first. Many times this year, we have tried to get him invovled early in the game by throwing an early WR screen or slant that he hasn't been able to bring in. it lets the air out of our sails early when we come away with nothing from these plays. Crab has been more then dependable in the short game. We need the Defense to fear Cooper all over the field and a lot of other players will benefit (Murray, Walford, Holmes and Roberts).
Contain their Tight Ends - The Titans love the tight end. Their top receiver is Delanie Walker who leads the team in every receiving category - targets (66), catches (53), yards (617) and touchdowns (3). Their fourth leading receiver is tight end Anthony Fasano who has 19 catches for 225 yards and 2 touchdowns. By week five the Raiders had discovered the key to their stopping the tight end was Neiron Ball. He has been out the past month with a knee injury and won't play this week either. So, this will be probably their biggest tight end coverage test in some time.
per Levi Damien and Me
Game Info
Location: Nissan Stadium, Nashville TN
Game time: Sunday, November 29, 10:00 am Pacific (1:00 pm ET)
TV channel: CBS (Do I get the game? http://506sports.com/)
Online streaming: NFL Game Pass (Live audio, replay after it's over)
Radio: 98.5 KFOX (Greg Papa, Tom Flores) | Full listings http://www.raiders.com/media-vault/radio-network.html
Odds: Raiders 2-point favorites
Match-up history: Raiders lead series 23-20, 11-14 in Houston/Tennessee, Streak 3 losses, Last win 2005
Announcers: Greg Gumbel, Trent Green
Enemy blog: Music City Miracles
Injury Report
RAIDERS
LB Neiron Ball Knee Out
C Rodney Hudson Ankle Doubtful
RB Taiwan Jones Knee Questionable
CB Keith McGill Ankle Out
TE Lee Smith Wrist Probable
S Charles Woodson Shoulder Probable
Titans
NT Sammie Hill Knee Probable
RB Dexter McCluster Knee Out
NT Al Woods Ankle Out
LB Derrick Morgan Shoulder Questionable
WR Kendall Wright Knee Probable
CB Blidi Wreh-Wilson Hamstring Probable
Inactives
OAKLAND
Neiron Ball OLB Inactive
Khalif Barnes T Inactive
Gabe Holmes TE Inactive
Rodney Hudson C Inactive
Taiwan Jones RB Inactive
Keith McGill CB Inactive
Rod Streater WR Inactive
Lee Smith TE Active
Charles Woodson FS Active Woodson (shoulder) is active.
Tennessee
Mike Martin DE Inactive
Dexter McCluster RB Inactive
Derrick Morgan OLB Inactive
Jeremiah Poutasi OT Inactive
Cody Riggs CB Inactive
Andrew Turzilli WR Inactive
Al Woods NT Inactive
Sammie Lee Hill NT Active
Blidi Wreh-Wilson FS Active Wreh-Wilson (hamstring) is active, which is good news for the Raiders WRs.
Kendall Wright WR Active Wright (knee) makes his return today.
WEATHER - Bring your ponchos people. Drizzles and showers are expected all day in Nashville with a temp of 60F and little wind. The field is open air so it gonna be a day when ball security is important and the deep ball may not be an option if the conditions get too bad.
Strength vs Strength - Our Oline has quietly put together a VERY good year. We rank 2nd in Pass blocking, giving up only 10 sacks in 11 games. We are 11th in run blocking . I give a lot of create to Reggie, JDR, Musgrave, Mike Tice and Rodney Hudson for the huge improvement. If it wasn't for Howard's flags and Webb's overall lapse this line could be in the argument for best in the league. Hudson will once again miss this week with a same ankle injury that has slowed him for the last 2 weeks.
The Titan's strength is their front 7. They are 7th in run defense and 11th in pass rush so far this year. They are led by OLB/DE Brian Orakpo and NT Jurell Casey. Both players are stout vs the have 7 and 5 sacks respectively. They have only given up 300 yrds once this year. They will most likely be without starting LOLB Derrick Morgan but former Raider draft pick David Bass has played well in replacement of him this year.
Whoever controls the line of scrimmage will win this game. Without Hudson we need to impose our will early and not let them breathe after our initial punch to the gut. Look for Musgrave to run at this group early with powers, traps, dive and counters with Murray and Olewale to get them off balance and then to really open up the passing game. We need a strong offensive showing to rebound from last weeks disappointment.
Get after Mariota - Most think of Mariota as a running quarterback, but he's not. He's a pocket passer who has the ability to run. If you needed proof, you just needed to watch last week's game against the Jaguars when he had his first rushing touchdown of the season. It went for 23 yards and was his longest run of the season. It doesn't help when the opposing defenses are able to focus on stopping him because the Titans have no running game to speak of. Autry, Mayowa and Mcgee all played well last week on the line and M.Smith and Heeney both came away with a sack but Mack and Edwards need to lead the charge provide consistent pressure and we'll have a good shot at containing this offense.
COOP - Early in the season, Amari Cooper was on fire. Lately he has cooled off considerably, including last week when he had more drops (2) than catches (1). The Raiders need his explosiveness to get open and then get downfield. Oh, and be sure and catch the ball inbetween. He has ten drops this season which is tied for second most in the league. When he's been great, he's been elite and at one time led the league in yards after catch. However, the key part of that statement is CATCH. Gotta get those first. Many times this year, we have tried to get him invovled early in the game by throwing an early WR screen or slant that he hasn't been able to bring in. it lets the air out of our sails early when we come away with nothing from these plays. Crab has been more then dependable in the short game. We need the Defense to fear Cooper all over the field and a lot of other players will benefit (Murray, Walford, Holmes and Roberts).
Contain their Tight Ends - The Titans love the tight end. Their top receiver is Delanie Walker who leads the team in every receiving category - targets (66), catches (53), yards (617) and touchdowns (3). Their fourth leading receiver is tight end Anthony Fasano who has 19 catches for 225 yards and 2 touchdowns. By week five the Raiders had discovered the key to their stopping the tight end was Neiron Ball. He has been out the past month with a knee injury and won't play this week either. So, this will be probably their biggest tight end coverage test in some time.
per Levi Damien and Me
Game Info
Location: Nissan Stadium, Nashville TN
Game time: Sunday, November 29, 10:00 am Pacific (1:00 pm ET)
TV channel: CBS (Do I get the game? http://506sports.com/)
Online streaming: NFL Game Pass (Live audio, replay after it's over)
Radio: 98.5 KFOX (Greg Papa, Tom Flores) | Full listings http://www.raiders.com/media-vault/radio-network.html
Odds: Raiders 2-point favorites
Match-up history: Raiders lead series 23-20, 11-14 in Houston/Tennessee, Streak 3 losses, Last win 2005
Announcers: Greg Gumbel, Trent Green
Enemy blog: Music City Miracles
Injury Report
RAIDERS
LB Neiron Ball Knee Out
C Rodney Hudson Ankle Doubtful
RB Taiwan Jones Knee Questionable
CB Keith McGill Ankle Out
TE Lee Smith Wrist Probable
S Charles Woodson Shoulder Probable
Titans
NT Sammie Hill Knee Probable
RB Dexter McCluster Knee Out
NT Al Woods Ankle Out
LB Derrick Morgan Shoulder Questionable
WR Kendall Wright Knee Probable
CB Blidi Wreh-Wilson Hamstring Probable
Inactives
OAKLAND
Neiron Ball OLB Inactive
Khalif Barnes T Inactive
Gabe Holmes TE Inactive
Rodney Hudson C Inactive
Taiwan Jones RB Inactive
Keith McGill CB Inactive
Rod Streater WR Inactive
Lee Smith TE Active
Charles Woodson FS Active Woodson (shoulder) is active.
Tennessee
Mike Martin DE Inactive
Dexter McCluster RB Inactive
Derrick Morgan OLB Inactive
Jeremiah Poutasi OT Inactive
Cody Riggs CB Inactive
Andrew Turzilli WR Inactive
Al Woods NT Inactive
Sammie Lee Hill NT Active
Blidi Wreh-Wilson FS Active Wreh-Wilson (hamstring) is active, which is good news for the Raiders WRs.
Kendall Wright WR Active Wright (knee) makes his return today.
