Raiders truly offensive after meltdown against Falcons
OAKLAND - The Raiders entered Sunday's game against the Atlanta Falcons
with 66 losses in their past 87 games since the start of the 2003 season.
Naturally, a number of those setbacks stand out for the way the Raiders
lost, how much they lost by or the team that doled out the punishment.
Go ahead, take your pick. It doesn't matter. Any game proffered now is
contending for the second-worst loss in the past 5?1/2 seasons. Sunday's
24-0 loss to the Falcons has to be the unquestioned standard bearer for
ignominy in the Raiders' continued quest to see how low they can go.
"We go out there and represent the names on our backs and represent this
organization," Raiders strong safety Gibril Wilson said. "We've got to
compete. I've never been in a situation where it's been this bad."
How bad? On Sunday, the Raiders showed just how bad things can be and
left open the belief that there always is room to perform worse. The
proof is in the numbers.
# The Falcons amassed 313 yards of offense in the first half, while the
Raiders entered the locker room with minus-2 yards offense on 13 plays.
The totals stood at 401-24 after three quarters.
# The Falcons recorded 20 first downs in the first half. The Raiders
failed to move the chains once in their five possessions - the final
drive ended after one play when quarterback JaMarcus Russell was sacked
on the last play before halftime. The Raiders notched their initial
first down in the third quarter. The Falcons led in this category 26-1
after three quarters and 30-3 at game's end.
# The Falcons scored touchdowns on their first three drives and tacked
on a field goal on their fourth possession. A fumble by quarterback Matt
Ryan at the Raiders' 20-yard line late in the first half ruined the
Falcons' chances for a fifth score.
# Russell completed 6 of 19 passes for 31 yards. Ryan hit on 13-of-16
for 184 yards and two touchdowns "... in the first half. Both players
were first-round picks in the NFL draft.
# The Falcons controlled the ball for 24 minutes, 8 seconds in the first
half. The Raiders had possession for 5:52. In the end, the Falcons had
the ball for 45:15 to the Raiders' 14:45.
# Falcons running back Michael Turner surpassed the 100-yard mark
rushing on his second carry of the third quarter. He and backup Jerious
Norwood combined for 202 yards.
# The Raiders offense ran all 13 of its first-half plays from inside
their 27-yard line and failed to penetrate the Falcons 35 until late in
the game.
Cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha has been around for every one of the 67
losses the past six seasons, so he speaks from perspective.
"In the first half, (that's) probably as bad as it gets," he said. "We
played Jacksonville and Green Bay last year. Those were pretty bad. I've
had some bad ones, but the first half (Sunday), that was bad."
Said coach Tom Cable, "Quite simply, we just did not do anything in
terms of what we were trying to do offensively. It was not a very good
effort today by the Oakland Raiders."
On the bright side, the Raiders kept pace with the AFC West-leading
Denver Broncos. The Raiders dropped to 2-6 but benefited from the
Broncos (4-4) losing to the Miami Dolphins.
"With this division, it's still up in the air," Raiders middle
linebacker Kirk Morrison said. "We have to understand that, all it takes
is for us to win a couple of games. Let's get on a roll, let things
snowball and just keep winning, winning, winning."
The ease with which the Falcons dismantled the Raiders has to be cause
for great concern for Cable, managing general partner Al Davis and
anyone else within the organization.
After all, both teams finished 4-12 last season. Both teams are guided
by an inexperienced quarterback. Both teams are led by first-time NFL
coaches. Yet, it appears as if the Falcons (5-3) are light years ahead
of the Raiders in their rebuilding process.
Numerous Raiders and Cable said their collective face-plant against the
Falcons caught them offguard. A solid week of practice portended a far
different outcome than the one that resulted.
"During the week, we look like we're a Super Bowl team, and we come out
there and we're damn near the laughingstock of the league," said Wilson,
who won a Super Bowl ring with the New York Giants last season. "It's
ridiculous."
