Raiders got conservative on Sunday, but for valid reasons
If you’re wondering about the conservative play-calling of Josh McDaniels during the Raiders’ win over the Patriots on Sunday, look no further than what was happening on the offensive line.
To the naked eye, it almost appeared as if McDaniels took the air out of the ball during a second-half stretch in which deep throws were replaced by short or intermediate passes, with a lot of Josh Jacobs and the ground game mixed in.
Turns out there was a valid reason why his play sheet leaned decisively in that direction.
Or, as McDaniels put it: “There are times where the game dictates that you’ve got to be smart versus, you know, trying to do too much.”
In this case, it was a situation that began building over the previous 11 days.
An injury to right guard Alex Bars last week against the Rams meant a replacement start for Hroniss Grasu, a center by trade and a season-long member of the Raiders’ practice squad. The last time Grasu played guard in the NFL — and really the only time — came in 2018 when he played 80 snaps at left guard for the Ravens.
Going all the way back to high school, Grasu has played primarily at center. That was problem number one.
To make matters worse, starting left guard Dylan Parham suffered a knee injury in the second quarter, forcing the Raiders to turn to Jordan Meredith, who they signed to their practice squad last week and elevated to their active roster just 24 hours before kickoff.
Meredith had not been with the Raiders since being released from their practice squad on September 23. The 41 snaps he got in place of Parham were his first in the NFL.
In other words, it was hardly an ideal predicament to be in against any opponent. Let alone a Patriots team with as formidable a defensive line as any in the NFL.
“That’s a really good front, obviously,” said McDaniels. “It’s just a really good defense.”
It wasn’t pretty. There were times when it was downright ugly. But to their credit, the Raiders figured out a way to work around it.
“I think we’re just every day, honestly, we’re trying to do the right thing,” said Raiders quarterback Derek Carr. “We’re trying to get all the right guys and everyone on the same page to do the right thing every day. When everybody does the right thing, the results are good.”
Not that adjustments weren’t made.
Aside from their last two second-half drives — or after the Patriots rallied from a 17-3 deficit to take a 24-17 lead — the Raiders turned to much more of a run-oriented attack peppered by shorter throws.
It created some frustration inside Allegiant Stadium among fans more used to, and frankly expecting, aggressive play-calling to put the Patriots away. Especially with how the Patriots climbed back into the game as a result.
But with Grasu and Meredith so new to their positions, McDaniels understood he couldn’t press them too hard.
“You’ve got to be smart with what you’re attempting to do there,” McDaniels said. “You’ve got to know who you’re out there with. And how long they’ve been here and what their limitations might be.”
As McDaniels pointed out, neither Meredith nor Grasu had played in a game since last August.
Fortunately, both came up relatively big on the Raiders’ drive to tie the game on Carr’s 30-yard touchdown pass to Keelan Cole.
“It takes everybody doing the right thing,” Carr said. “And our guys stepped up in that moment and did it right.”
Said McDaniels: “I thought those guys battled their butts off.”
The hope now is the Raiders get Parham and Bars back for Saturday’s game against the Steelers in Pittsburgh. Although McDaniels did not have any definitive word on Monday morning.
“I know both those guys are really tough,” McDaniels said. “And I know that they’re going to do everything they can to help us, if they can.”
Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on Twitter.