Raiders Crush Chargers- The Winners


It was an historic night in Allegiant Stadium with the Raiders scoring their highest ever points total. Every Raiders player and coach deserves credit and praise but it was a big night for the following: 


1. Malcolm Koonce

Malcolm Koonce's stats were off the chart. He's had an exceptional season even before last night's game. Coming out of college he was likened to fellow University of Buffalo DE Khalil Mack and now we know why.

- 2 sacks
- 2 FF
- 5 pressures
- 3 QB Hits
- 2 TFL
- 4 Stops
- 12.8% Win Rate
- 91.6 PFF Grade


2. Patrick Graham

Patrick Graham is one of the top defensive coaches in the league. He'll likely get head coach interviews (possibly including the Raiders)


3. The Offensive Line

The Raiders turned to some backups due to the absence of Kolton Miller and Andre James. And the offensive line produced a sensational effort. Thayer Munford at right tackle was solid all game long. And Dylan Parham may now be our first choice centre. The line solidified around him.


4. Aidan O’Connell



The rookie had a great game. He showed poise all game long and the TD pass to Meyers in the corner was exquisite. I still think the Raiders should draft a QB in the first round but if we keep winning it's more likely that QB will be in later rounds and O'Connell might become the guy.

ATT       YDS  TD  INT  SACKS
20/34   248   4       0       1-6


5. Antonio Pierce



The Raiders play for their coach and will always play hard for the former Super Bowl winner.

He has galvanised a dispirited bunch.  While the 3-0 defeat to the Vikings is a blot on his resume, this performance just 4 days later, has put AP in pole position for the full time head coach job.

Also special mention must go to Tre Tucker. Scorer of two TDs, Tucker's added a potent vertical threat to the Raiders offense. Zamir White, in his first start, showed a great burst of pace carrying the ball for 69 yards (4.1 yards per carry) including an early TD. The Jack Jones interception was elite in anticipation and execution. And Michael Mayer's block on Khalil Mack in the buildup to the first TD set the tone for the evening. Mayer struggled with this aspect of his game earlier in the season so it is testament to the coaches and to Mayer himself to see him excel against one of the premier NFL pass rushers. 

In the words of Antonio Pierce 

Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiders!!!!!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

McNamara's Band: Irish Ode to Tottenham Hotspur

Image
Danny Blanchflower lifting the FA Cup Back in the glory years of the 1950's and 1960's as Tottenham Hotspur won 3 FA Cups, 2 League titles and a European Cup Winners Cup, the team would enter the White Hart Lane pitch to the tune of the Irish jingle McNamara's Band. The upbeat song seemed to rhyme with Tottenham's stylistic approach: push and run, high tempo, passionate, skillful and tough.  But why McMamara's Band? What was it's association with Tottenham Hotspur? The composer of the song John Stamford was the manager of the Alhambra Theatre in Belfast and legend has it he composed the lyrics while living close by Tottenham in Barnet.  Another theory is that it was adopted by Spurs fans when Northern Ireland's Danny Blanchflower joined the club in 1954. While the presence of the immortal Blanchflower propelled Tottenham to greatness the song was part of Tottenham folklore long before 1954.  It has been suggested by older generation Spurs support
Read more

The unprofessional timing of Kane's interview

Image
Anyone else irritated by the timing of Harry Kane's interview with Gary Neville? Kane by and large speaks the truth but the timing is poor.  Firstly lets look at the interviewer. Neville was apoplectic over the inequalities of the Super League yet is quite happy to promote the inequalities of the Premier League. As an analyst he has openly disrespected Spurs on many an occasion. He was a poor choice for a golfing partner that day.  Secondly we still have one match left this season and in theory could qualify for the Europa League. And Kane is giving chummy golf interviews about "honest conversations?". Thirdly, and most importantly, Kane and his Spurs team played in three finals for Spurs and on every occasion underperformed and underwhelmed on the big stage. In fact Kane  should not even have started the Champions League Final as he was far from match fit on the night itself   Kane wants to win trophies and clearly wants to leave.....but we have another cup f
Read more