There is plenty wrong with the Raiders defense so far through two games, and it’s the big concern for the team going into Tennessee this Sunday to play the Titans.
Oakland ranks last in the NFL in total defense, allowing a whopping 517 yards per game and 8 yards per play.
But in Tennessee, the Titans have their own concerns about the Raiders offense. Oakland ranks No. 1 in the NFL at 470 yards per game. It’s a number built on the Raiders’ solid rushing attack (No. 2 in the league at 161 yards per game) and the continued improvement of quarterback Derek Carr, a cast of good receivers and a better offensive line that has allowed just one sack in two games.
Now in his third season, Carr continues to improve. He ranks seventh in the league in quarterback rating (107.4), sixth in yards (618) and sixth in completion percentage (69.9 percent). He’s thrown four touchdown passes without an interception and is averaging 8.4 yards per pass attempt. That number has increased every year. It was 5.3 in 2014 and 7.1 last year.
If Carr has a big game Sunday – with 282 yards or more passing – he’d become just the second Raiders QB ever to throw for 900 or more yards in the season’s first three games, joining Rich Gannon in 2002.
This week, Titans head coach Mike Mularkey said his defense will have its hands full stopping the Raiders offense. He says Carr is a “game wrecker.”
“He’s very confident, obvious in his body language,” Mularkey told reporters Wednesday. “Some of the throws he’s making are outstanding. He’s throwing it into some tight windows. He’s got a lot of trust in his skill players and he’s got some skill players, very dangerous guys.
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“I just watch his body language and the way he commands, even on film.”
Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio says some of the credit for Carr’s continued improvement so far in 2016 goes to the pass protection.
Said Del Rio: “I think the O-line group is doing a great job looking to keep our quarterback clean and open up some holes for our running backs.”
The 1-1 Raiders will take on the 1-1 Titans Sunday at 10 a.m.
