For the second straight week, the Raiders won a close game thanks to their defense, beating the Patriots at home, 21-17 on Sunday. But if the Las Vegas offense, led by head coach and play caller Josh McDaniels, had played better in the red zone, the victory could’ve been a blowout instead of a nail-biter.
The group was just 1-for-6 scoring touchdowns within the Patriots’ 20-yard line, continuing the early-season struggles for the Raiders offense. Sunday was the first time Las Vegas scored more than 20 points in a game, and the final score came courtesy of a game-sealing safety from the defense.
Talking to reporters on Monday, McDaniels was asked about a possible disconnect on offense as they approach the end zone. He shot that idea down and said penalties and missed opportunities are to blame.
“There’s no disconnect. When you get down there, there’s a premium on everything we do,” he said. “We had multiple penalties down there that cost us. We had two holding penalties and an offensive pass interference that puts you in a 1st-and-20 or 2nd-and-20, in an area where that’s really difficult to overcome.”
The two holding penalties McDaniels referred to were committed by offensive linemen Dylan Parham and Thayer Munford Jr, and the offensive pass interference was committed by WR Jakobi Meyers.
“And then we missed some opportunities,” McDaniels continued. “We had opportunities. Whether it was the running game or the passing game, we didn’t quite capitalize on them. Again, down there, it’s all about details and execution. There’s very little margin for error. When you make an error, it usually is exacerbated and ends up in either a negative play, or you’re kicking field goals.
“Obviously we have to do better. I have to do a better job of getting us to play penalty-free.”
After his offense scored only 17 points against the Packers in the Raiders’ Week 5 win, McDaniels said he hoped the offense’s best days were ahead. It appears that notion is on hold, though McDaniels still expects his group to have a breakthrough.
“The good [part] about that is, you play good enough to get down there as many times as [we] do, now let’s fix that area of the field. Let’s play our best football down there going forward. In that regard, I’m a ‘glass half full’ guy.”
Starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo suffered a back injury against the Patriots, so while McDaniels remains optimistic, he may be calling plays for a backup QB in the Raiders’ Week 7 matchup against the Bears in Chicago.
Regardless of who’s in at QB, the Raiders need to make scoring more than 20 points a habit if they plan on having a winning season. McDaniels knows that, clearly, as does his team. They’ll try to solve those issues yet again during practice this week before they go for their third straight win on Sunday against the Bears.
