Oakland Raiders: The good, bad, and ugly in season opening loss to Rams

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OAKLAND, CA – SEPTEMBER 10: Derek Carr #4 of the Oakland Raiders grabs his ankle after a play against the Los Angeles Rams during their NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on September 10, 2018 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

Good: Just One Game

The good news is that this is just one game on a 16-game slate. All this really means is that the Raiders won’t be going 16-0 this season. And given that nobody gave them a snowball’s chance to beat the Rams anyway, they didn’t fall short of anybody’s expectations.

Not only that, but given the way they played in that first half, and how well and thoroughly they stifled Goff and that explosive offense, it shows that if, the team can play up to their capabilities, they could hang with some of the league’s big boys, and might not be nearly as dreadful and dumpster fire-esque as many believe they will be.

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With so many new faces, it will take a minute for Carr and his guys to settle into the new roles. It just so happened that Goff and company – with the added benefit of having a year of McVay’s system under their belts – settled into that groove faster.

In the end though, it is just one game, and one game does not a season make. And there were plenty of encouraging signs in that first half to build upon. Things that they did very, very well, and things fans should be encouraged about.

There are some winnable games in Oakland’s immediate future, and they would do well to quickly turn the page, focus on the good things they did, and build on them.

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