Oakland Raiders: A few keys to victory over the Cleveland Browns

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CLEVELAND, OH – SEPTEMBER 20: Bake Mayfield #6 of the Cleveland Browns runs off the field after a 21-17 win over the New York Jets at FirstEnergy Stadium on September 20, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Contain The Rookie

All offseason long, the speculation was rampant that Baker Mayfield – the number one overall pick in this year’s draft – would be under center for the Browns. It took three games, and an injury to to starter Tyrod Taylor, but those predictions finally came to fruition.

And Mayfield didn’t disappoint in his first appearance.

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Granted, it was against the lowly New York Jets, who haven’t looked the same since their opening week drubbing of the Detroit Lions, but are still sporting the league’s sixth-ranked pass defense, and he carved them up.

For the day, Mayfield went 17/23 (a 74 percent completion rate) for 201 yards. He had no touchdowns, and no interceptions, but did have a QB rating of 100.1, and was able to help secure a 21-17 victory – the Browns’ first win since the Paleolithic Era.

The Raiders are going to have a tough time simply because there’s not a lot of tape on Mayfield, so preparing for him will be tough. He’s a threat both with his arm, and with his legs. He can extend plays, and make things happen.

To beat him, the Raiders will need to keep contain on him. Against the Dolphins last week, they allowed Ryan Tannehill to break that contain, and extend plays – and even pick up a couple of crucial first downs. It was one of the things that helped beat them last week.

They’re going to need to do a better job on a faster, more mobile quarterback in Mayfield. And they’re going to have to do it with very little tape on him. Which makes it more important for the rushing linemen to stay in their lanes, and keep contain.

Otherwise, it could be a very long afternoon in Oakland.

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