Has Clelin Ferrell finally arrived?
As the Raiders head into the second half of this 2019 season, No. 1 pick Ferrell is coming off his best game. The defensive end had a monster performance in Oakland’s 26-24 victory over the Chargers this past Thursday night, with 2½ sacks, eight tackles, three quarterback hits and a batted pass.
Ferrell had produced a sack in the season-opening victory over Denver on Sept. 9, but had gone six straight games without another until his big game against the Chargers.
Raiders head coach Jon Gruden and the coaching staff had repeatedly said they were happy with the progress Ferrell was making, but Oakland needed Ferrell to get sacks – the reason he was taken with the fourth overall pick of the draft out of Clemson.
“Clelin Ferrell and the pass rush showed up,” Gruden told Paul Gutierrez of ESPN after the victory over the Chargers. “He (Ferrell) does a lot more than just rush the passer. He made some great plays against the run. It was a signature game for him, obviously, but it’s great for him to get some sacks.”
In that game, rookie defensive ends Ferrell and Maxx Crosby were in Philip Rivers’ face all night, with Crosby getting a half sack and 10 quarterback pressures. Ferrell had five QB pressures.
All told, the Raiders sacked Rivers five times and forced bad throws, intercepting him three times. Ferrell said it was a big win for his team, which is now 5-4 and just behind the 6-4 Chiefs in the AFC West (and ahead of the 4-6 Chargers).
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“Now we know that we can play with anybody in our division,” he said.
And, the Raiders and Ferrell will try to keep up the pressure this Sunday, when they play host to the 0-9 Bengals.
Perhaps Ferrell will be a much bigger presence over the final eight games.
“Clelin needed that,” said Crosby of Ferrell’s big game. “A lot of people have been saying this or that but it doesn’t matter. Clelin came out, he balled out. Did what he was supposed to do. It was huge for us.”
Kickoff Sunday in Oakland is set for 1:25 p.m.
