Oakland Raiders not named Carr or Mack crucial to team’s 2018 success

Marshawn Lynch

It’s no secret that the running game is going to be the engine that makes Gruden’s offense go. His philosophy has always been to pound the rock to open up the passing game.

It’s a philosophy that worked beautifully when he had guys like Tyrone Wheatley, Charlie Garner, Rich Gannon, Tim Brown, and Jerry Rice, in his first go ’round with the Raiders.

Now that Chucky is back, you can already see him trying to recreate that old offensive magic. Carr, Amari Cooper, Jordy Nelson, and Martavis Bryant have the ability to light it up in ways not even Gannon, Brown, and Rice could.

Make no mistake though, it’s going to be Marshawn Lynch – and to a lesser extent, Doug Martin – who are the engines that will power Oakland’s offensive machine.

And for the Raiders offense to get off the ground and soar to those lofty heights, we’re going to need to see the Lynch we saw over the last five or six weeks of last season, rather than the more pedestrian version we saw over the first ten or eleven.

What works in Lynch’s favor is that he has an actual offensive mind in Gruden, a big, solid fullback to run behind in Keith Smith, and an offensive line that should get back to its come off the ball and punch people in the face, power running ways.

Lynch’s greatest seasons up in Seattle were when he ran behind a strong line and strong fullback. Conditions that Gruden appears to be setting up in Oakland. Which could prime Lynch for a season of success – maybe one last 1,000-yard gallop before riding off into the sunset.

Although Carr and the passing game will get a lot of the spotlight in what has become a passing league, it really can’t be understated just how vital Lynch getting off is going to be to the success of the offense as a whole.