Gabe Jackson wasn’t satisfied with his play Sunday in Green Bay.
The veteran guard – making his 2019 regular-season debut – told reporters he has a few things to clean up.
"I’ve got a lot more room to improve," said Jackson. "Just feeling better and getting back in a rhythm. It’ll take time, but I’m just glad to be out there."
Jackson’s return was a bright spot on an otherwise disappointing day. The Raiders, coming off a bye week, had won two straight over the Bears and Colts to get to 3-2 and hoped to get a win against the Packers to stay close to the AFC West-leading Chiefs (now 5-2).
But the return of Jackson was long-awaited and welcomed. Jackson injured his knee in training camp and the offensive line hasn’t yet played a full game together.
First, Jackson and left guard Richie Incognito (suspension) were out to start the season. Now, right tackle Trent Brown is working through an injury and was on the inactive list Sunday (replaced by David Sharpe). But Jackson’s return means the Raiders should soon have the full starting group back intact soon, perhaps even this coming Sunday when Oakland travels to Houston to play the Texans.
Jackson helped open holes to allow rookie running back Josh Jacobs to rush 21 times for 124 yards and combined with the rest of the O-line to keep Derek Carr from being sacked even once by the Packers.
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Carr says Jackson’s presence in the lineup is huge. They’ve started together since 2014, when Carr was a second-round pick and Jackson was a third-rounder.
"(To) have Gabe back, and have that continuity … There was a few plays that happened just because of playing so much together, where we broke the huddle, he looked at me, and we were able to check to a play and get a scoring touchdown before anyone knew what was going on. Just getting that continuity again, we can see things that we’ve seen before, and it’s nice."
Sunday’s game in Houston is set for kickoff at 10 a.m. The Texans are 4-3.
