The Raiders offensive line didn’t get a good grade on its first exam.
Now comes a much tougher test.
In facing the Houston Texans Sunday at O.co Coliseum, the Raiders, now 0-1 after losing to the Jets last week, can’t afford to drop to 0-2 with a trip to face the Patriots next week in New England. And one of the big factors in whether the Raiders can get their first win Sunday will be how the rebuilt offensive line can handle the NFL’s best defensive lineman – J.J. Watt – and a terrific defensive front seven.
In a victory over Washington in Week 1, Watt batted down a pass, blocked an extra-point attempt, had three tackles (two for loss), five quarterback hits and a sack of quarterback Robert Griffin III.
If the Raiders are going to have a chance of picking up their first victory and gaining some momentum, the offensive line will need to protect rookie QB Derek Carr and open some holes for Darren McFadden and Latavius Murray.
Oakland offensive coordinator Greg Olson told Bay Area reporters this week that blocking Watt will be a top priority. When he was asked if the offense would have to focus on Watt, Olson said yes.
“If you look to last week’s game, he kind of single-handedly wrecked that football game for the Redskins,” said Olson. “He’s a tremendous player. I hope we don’t see a lot of J.J. Watts down the road. He has the capability to do that to teams.”
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Against the Jets, the Raiders could rush for just 25 yards, which put the pressure on Carr to beat the Jets through the air – something the Raiders want to avoid as much as possible in the early going this season.
In assessing the play of the offensive line against the Jets in Week 1, Jerry McDonald of the Bay Area News Group wrote: “The offensive line was beaten consistently at the line of scrimmage and didn’t approach last Dec. 8 when the Raiders got 150 yards rushing against the Jets. The running game failures kept Carr in poor down and distance and played a major role in the Week 1 demise.”
Yet Olson remains convinced the Raiders can run the football – even against Watt & Co.
“I have every belief that we will be able to run the football this year,” he said.
Head coach Dennis Allen, too, believes the line of tackles Donald Penn and Khalif Barnes, guards Gabe Jackson and Austin Howard and center Stefen Wisniewski can be a much more cohesive and effective group than it appeared last week.
Said Allen: “I felt like, and still feel like, the line of scrimmage can be a plus for us. It obviously wasn’t in that game and we’ve got to be better in that area.”
Based on what they saw in Week 1, NFL oddsmakers don’t have faith that the Raiders can get their first victory Sunday. They’ve made the Texans 3-point favorites.
