Oakland Raiders: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly Vs. Tennessee Titans
By Kevin Saito
The Ugly – The Run Defense Got Run Over
If some of Oakland’s defense woke up Monday morning wondering about the license plate number of the truck that ran them over, they can’t really be blamed.
That truck happened to be Titans running back DeMarco Murray who made mincemeat out of Oakland’s run defense. For the game, Murray notched 114 yards on 16 carries for a healthy 7.1 yards per carry average. He also added a touchdown.
As a team, the Titans rushed for 181 yards on 29 carries for a yards per carry average of 6.2 – well above their season average.
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Tennessee’s running backs routinely gashed this Raiders defense for big gains. Whether they ran over the left end, the right end, or straight up the gut, Oakland’s run defense seemed powerless to stop them.
Unfortunately, Tennessee’s dominance on the ground is nothing new for the Raiders this season. It’s just another in a string of very sub-par performances by their run defense. For the season, Oakland ranks right near the bottom of the league in run defense, giving up 136 yards per game.
If you’re scoring at home, their run defense is only better than Chicago, Miami, and New Orleans. It’s not the sort of company this Raiders team wants to be keeping.
The Raiders made some real progress in run defense last season. They moved up from the bottom of the league in 2014 to a more respectable thirteenth place finish last season. Many thought adding pieces like Bruce Irvin, Jihad Ward, and Shilique Calhoun to a talented group would make them even better.
So far this season, it hasn’t panned out that way. Weakness at the inside linebacker spots as well as the absence of Mario Edwards Jr. is wreaking havoc with Oakland’s run defense. But they’re going to need to plug those holes if they hope to compete for a playoff spot.