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

Good: Beast Mode Being Beast Mode

When he was being used in the first half, Marshawn Lynch wasn’t putting up eye-popping numbers, but he was chipping away at that Rams defense, and grinding out some tough yards – which is no easy task against a defensive front filled with such a collection of big time talent.

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It’s not easy to run against a front that’s filled with the likes of Aaron Donald, Ndamukong Suh, and Michael Brockers, to be sure.

But, they were making it work. The ground game was doing their part to keep the Rams honest enough to open things up for Carr and the passing game. And there was perhaps no bigger, or better play for doing that, than when Lynch scratched, clawed, and fought – for a touchdown on that opening drive.

On that play, Lynch dragged multiple defenders with him, looking a lot like the old vintage Beast Mode.

On the night, Lynch didn’t exactly light up the stat sheet. He ran just 11 times for 41 total yards, and that impressive, beastly touchdown. But, he ground out some tough yards when needed. And though he was used less frequently in the second half, than the first (seven carries in the first half, just four in the second), he seemed to getting stronger – as often seems to be the case with Lynch.

Over his seven first half carries, Lynch managed a total of 21 yards (including that ten yard touchdown slog). His four second half carries netted him a total of 20 yards – an average of five yards per carry.

Unfortunately, as Carr’s picks mounted, and the Raiders fell further behind, they had no choice but to try and throw themselves back into the game. It obviously didn’t work.

But, to see Lynch run with such power, and overall, pretty effectively, is a good sign moving forward.