49ers wont let Raiders off hook after Jets inexplicable unforced error
The Raiders found a way to beat the Jets 38-33 on Sunday, despite trailing at times.They should be proud of that.Winning while working through your own shortcomings is a skill, especially for a team still learning how to do it.But let’s not confuse finding a way to win with finding answers to everything that nearly got them beat.Especially when the opponent supplied one of the biggest answers itself.After hammering the Raiders for 140 rushing yards in the first half, the Jets ran the ball just four times in the second.Four.An offense that had spent two quarters finding something that worked essentially stopped asking the Raiders to prove they could stop it.It was an inexplicable unforced error.
The Raiders were right to accept the gift.They would be foolish to expect another one Sunday against the 49ers.Kyle Shanahan will have access to the same film everyone else does.He will see the running lanes, the missed assignments and the opportunities the Jets left behind.
He will also see a defense that has been pummeled on the ground far too often.The Raiders run defense is the second worst in the NFL.The 5.1 yards per carry they are surrendering ranks dead last.Nothing about that suggests a coach who needs to outsmart himself.If the Raiders cannot stop the run, Shanahan has every reason to keep calling it.Defensive coordinator Rob Leonard did not pretend the Jets game represented some sweeping breakthrough.“Yeah, no, it wasn’t pretty,” Leonard said.
“There’s a lot we have to fix.”There were also things worth appreciating.The Raiders forced the Jets to settle for field goals in situations that could have produced touchdowns.
They absorbed punches and kept competing.Those stops helped make the victory possible.But red-zone resilience is a difficult foundation for an entire defensive game plan.
Keep letting an opponent march into scoring position, and eventually the math becomes unforgiving.Leonard said the Raiders tried to adjust against the run.He was ...