The Oakland Raiders defense looked fantastic but inept offense and special teams meant a 3-0 loss at home to the Dallas Cowboys to start the Dennis Allen era. Only four days later they played their second preseason game on the road against the Arizona Cardinals.
The Raiders looked awful on their opening series as a couple of Carson Palmer incompletions and a 3rd and 10 running play blown up in the backfield meant a 3 and out and a punt. A 68 yard punt went to return Patrick Peterson, who has the potential to be the next Devon Hester. Peterson returned it 43 yards to the Oakland 42. On 3rd and 8, Kevin Kolb fired a 17 yard completion. Ryan Williams did much of the rest, and his 4 yard touchdown run up the middle made it look easy as the Cardinals took a 7-0 lead only 4 minutes into the game.
For the second straight series Jacoby Ford took a kickoff deep in the end zone and came up well short of the 20. A pair of runs to Darren McFadden gained only 2 yards. However, on 3rd and 8 from the 20, Palmer found Jacoby Ford for 16 yards and a first down. Palmer then hit Darriud Heyward-Bey for 14 yards with roughing the passer adding 15 more. McFadden then picked up 22 and another 4. On 2nd and 6 from the Arizona 13, Palmer threw a perfect pass to the end zone and Heyward-Bey dropped it. On 3rd down Palmer threw a pass off his back foot to the end zone. Rod Streater made a miraculous catch, but on further review it was ruled that the ball hit the ground incomplete. The Cardinals were called for defensive pass interference, giving the Raiders 1st and goal at the one.
Darren McFadden got two carries that went nowhere, and a 3rd own play action pass resulted in Palmer throwing out the back of the end zone. In a very curious decision on 4th and goal at the one, Dennis Allen decided on the field goal. To do this early in a preseason game makes little sense. However, with the Raiders failing to score last week, perhaps Allen wanted to just see points. The 19 yard chip shot was good, but the Raiders trailed 7-3 in a drive that started strong and ended with a missed opportunity. Last year the Raiders had problems finishing drives and games, and it cost them.
The Cardinals began their second drive on their own 5. On second down Kolb was called for intentional grounding just outside the end zone. On 3rd and long from their own 1, Kolb got buried in the end zone by Tommy Kelly for the safety. The Raiders trailed 7-5. In unrelated news, Tommy kelly is adopting the Ben Hardin tradition of being a black man with an Orthodox Jewish beard.
Jacoby Ford took the free kick at the 18 and returned it 21 yards to the 39. Ford caught a pass for 9 yards and then went off the field limping. Injuries killed the Raiders last year, with McFadden, Ford, and Denarius Moore being the key ones. Moore was out of this game was a hamstring injury suffered in minicamp. McFadden was healthy, but now Ford was going to the locker rooms again.
On 3rd and 1 just shy of midfield, after burning a timeout, McFadden got the first down. McFadden took a swing pass 17 yards to the Arizona 31. On 3rd and 2 Palmer found a wide open McFadden by the sideline. However, a sure touchdown instead was an incompletion. The throw was too close to the sideline and McFadden did not get his second foot down. The replay actually did show McFadden getting both feet down, but in another strange decision Coach Allen did not challenge the call. Another drive ended prematurely although Seabass hit the 40 yard field goal, his second of the night, to have the Raiders up 8-7 after the opening quarter.
The Raiders defense looked very strong on the next series as Tyvon Branch, Wheeler, and Shaughnessy all met at Kevin Kolb and belted him. The Cardinals punted and the Raiders started at their own 42. Disaster immediately struck as Palmer tried to force a ball into coverage that was intercepted and returned 64 yards to the Oakland 4. On 2nd and goal from the 3, Kolb faded back and just avoided a sack by completing a pass to an ineligible offensive lineman. That was compounded by holding, setting up 3rd and goal at the 13. Under heavy pressure on the next play, Kolb dumped it off for a one yard loss. Jay Feely hit a 32 yard field goal to put the Cardinals up 10-8 early in the second quarter.
McFadden appeared done for the night although Palmer stayed in. With Michael Bush in Chicago, the backup to McFadden is Mike Goodson. Goodson fumbled, and the Cardinals took over at the Oakland 22. Kolb was also done for the night after a miserable quarter plus of work. John “Red” Skelton came in and looked good right away, completing a couple passes to set up 3rd and 2 from the Raiders 4. Skelton hit a wide open Sherman out of the flat for an easy touchdown to put the Cardinals up 17-8.
Things got worse for the Raiders on their next series. They failed to convert on 3rd and 3. A backup punter not named Shane Lechler saw a special teams breakdown. The punt was blocked and returned for an easy touchdown. The Raiders were now getting trounced 24-8 midway through the second quarter. An illegal block on the next series had the Raiders starting on their own 7 yard line.
The Raiders received a break on 3rd and 1 when a pass to Rod Streater initially looked short but was ruled a first down. The offense looked anemic without McFadden, and Palmer did not have much experience working with Goodson. On 2nd and 11 a shovel pass to Goodson was fumbled, and then the Cardinals fumbled it right back. It was Goodson’s 2nd fumble of the night, but somehow the Raiders ended up with 1st and 10 the hard way. Godson had his bell rung on the play, and went to the locker room.
The Raiders were looking terrible on offense from a turnover standpoint, but not from a penalty standpoint. For the second straight game they were not getting flagged that often. They had “only” 5 penalties last week and were playing fairly clean this week. They finally did pick up an offensive holding penalty. The Raiders received another lucky break when a hard hit on Darrius Heyward-Bey was ruled unnecessary roughness. Heyward-Bey did receive contact to the head.
On 3rd and 5 from the Arizona 46, Palmer found Rod Streater for what appeared to be a first down. It was ruled short and this time Dennis Allen did challenge the spot. For all the talk about replacement officials, they got this one right. On further review the call was reversed based on forward progress, and the Raiders had 1st and 10 at the Arizona 41. Palmer rolled out and took off for an 11 yard gain. Although Palmer got out of bounds, for some reason the clock kept ticking to the 2 minute warning. Nobody seemed to question this.
Under heavy pressure, Palmer somehow found Streater for a short gain. Another short pass to Streater meant another first down. Lonyae Miller barreled forward for a tough 9 yard gain and another short gain to set up 1st and goal at the 7. On 2nd and goal at the 3 the Raiders finally took their second timeout with 20 seconds left. A pair of incompletions meant another failed attempt inside the 5 yard line. Sebastian Janikowski hit the 21 yarder as the Raiders trailed 24-11 at halftime. They had gone 6 quarters without a single touchdown.
The second half started badly for the Raiders when Powell took the kickoff 8 yards deep in the end zone and returned it for the Cardinals to their own 40. Yet Skelton quickly threw a ball that was underthrown and intercepted by Chimmy Chekwa. The Raiders took over at their own 33. Palmer played the first half, and former Arizona bust Matt Leinart came in at quarterback for the Raiders. Lonyae Miller carried a couple times for a first down. Captain Checkdown Leinart looked to go deep but naturally checked down to a nearby receiver. On 3rd and 3 Leinart found Eddie McGee for a 2 yard gain. For those who despise the West Coast Offense and quarterbacks like Matt Leinart, that one play symbolized it perfectly. Dink and Dunk became dink and punt. Stats are padded without the scoring results.
Yet the Raiders received another lucky break when the Cardinals had 12 men on the defense during the punt. Defensive penalties were the best way for the Raiders to get first downs. Given knew life, Leinart threw a duck in the air that was badly underthrown. Yet Creiner adjusted and the defender did not, giving the Raiders 1st and 10 just outside the red zone. On 3rd and 12 from the 17, Leinart threw another incompletion. However the Raiders received yet another break when defensive pass interference made it 1st and goal at the one. Lonyae Miller was initally stopped short, but a second effort finally got he Raiders into the end zone. The extra point was blocked but the Raiders were within 24-17.
Skelton looked impressive in his limited time, rendering further play unnecessary. The Cardinals third string quarterback came in. The Raiders had their backups in on defense as well. A pair of terrible mistackles on short passes meant an Arizona first down. A false start had Arizona facing 3rd and 12. One short pass later and they were punting. Now it was time to see if Leinart could tie the game against a backup defense. A backup punt returner fielded it at the 3 yard line rather than letting it go into the end zone. The Raiders took over at their own 13.
On 3rd and 9 Leinart threw a solid ball to Brandon Carwell for a 19 yard gain. An end around that almost resulted in a big loss gained 8 yards. Another completion by Leinart had the Raiders past the midstripe. Leinart avoided a sack and threw the ball away before getting blasted. Roughing the passer was called as the helmet to helmet shot had the Raiders at the Arizona 30. At that point the Cardinals had 10 penalties for 103 yards and the Raiders had 2 for 17 yards.
The hit on Leinart resulted in Terrell Pryor coming in at quarterback sooner than expected as the trainers looked at Leinart on the sidelines. Pryor began with a false start, a loss, and a sack. Now it was 3rd and 25. The Raiders ran the ball for only 3 yards as long field goal range instead became a punt.
The Chris Berman phrase “rumbling, bumbling, stumbling” was an accurate description next. The third string Arizona quarterback faced 3rd and 8 from the Cardinals 20. Carl Ihenacho came from the outside and chopped the ball free. The fumble was picked up cleantly by Hall Davis at the 5. Davis fell down but rolled into the end zone untouched. The extra point was good as the game was tied 24-24 after three quarters.
Lindley is the third string Arizona quarterback, and from midfield he benefitted from running back Powell. Powell gained about 11. Lindley then fired deep to the sideline. Demarco Harrison outjumped two defenders to set up 1st and goal. Powell then took an off-tackle handoff and practically walked into the end zone to put the Cardinals back on top 31-24 with 11 1/2 minutes left.
After a touchback, Miller ran a couple times to set up 3rd and 2. Yet Pryor could only scramble for one more yard as the Raiders punted again. The Raiders received a gift on the next series when the Cardinals fumbled and Oakland took over at the Arizona 40. Yet Pryor could do nothing and a false start meant 3rd and 13. A short pass set up 4th and 5 from the 35. With 5 1/2 minutes left in the game, Coach Allen decided not to go for it. Backup kicker Carmona nailed the 53 yard field goal but the Raiders still trailed 31-27. The had to get the ball back.
The Cardinals soon faced 3rd and 6 at their own 28. Lindley went deep to Williams for 31 yards. James then got the ball 6 straight times. The 5th of those carries came with 1:48 to play and the Cardinals facing 3rd and 5 at the Oakland 25 after the Raiders had taken their second timeout. The carry went for 14 yards and the Raiders never got the ball back. The Cardinals bled the final 5 1/2 minutes off the clock.
The Raiders starters looked good on defense after the opening touchdown from a short field. They beat up Kevin Kolb but John Skelton looked much better. Darren McFadden still looks fantastic, and Palmer is simply a better player with McFadden in the lineup. Leinart got hurt again and unfortunately so did Jacoby Ford. Both lost last year to injury.
The special teams for the Raiders are a mess, not counting their two standouts Lechler and Seabass. They gave up long returns. Raider fans should not be excited based on these two games. While the finals cores don’t count, a win would be nice. Last year Hue Jackson went 0-4 in preseason and won the regular season opener, as the Raiders went 7-4 before collapsing down the stretch under injuries.
One positive for the Raiders is the drastically reduced number of penalties. One negative is the increase in turnovers. Mike Goodson has fumbleitis, and Pryor has a long way to go before becoming an NFL quarterback. In the end, like with every preseason game, we learn nothing. So why do we talk about it? Because we love football. 31-27 Cardinals
eric