Raiders ‘happy’ with new-look offense, but see room to improve
The Raiders were mostly pleased with their offensive operation Sunday in interim offensive coordinator Scott Turner’s first game in charge.
The play-calling was more diverse. The offensive line played one of its cleanest games of the season. Rookie tight end Brock Bowers set career highs in targets (16), catches (13) and receiving yards (126).
That helped the Raiders (2-8) keep pace with an explosive Dolphins offense most of the game in a 34-19 loss at Hard Rock Stadium.
“I was happy with the way the guys played,” Turner said. “I mean, the guys really stuck with it the whole time.”
It’s a good starting point for a group that had just three practices under its belt with Turner in charge before Sunday’s game.
The Raiders, despite dealing with numerous changes on their offensive coaching staff, looked more cohesive than they did at any point under former offensive coordinator Luke Getsy.
“I felt like we were pretty consistent moving the ball,” quarterback Gardner Minshew said. “I mean, I think we had seven drives, and we’re moving it on about all of them.”
Turner deserves plenty of credit for the quick transition after Getsy, offensive line coach James Cregg and quarterbacks coach Rich Scangarello were fired Nov. 3. As do interim offensive line coach Joe Philbin and senior advisor Norv Turner, Scott’s father.
“I think (Scott Turner) did a great job in the week, prepping us, getting us ready, understanding the plan and (making) it easy to execute when we got out there,” Minshew said.
The Raiders’ next step is turning that production into points and wins. They fell short on both fronts against the Dolphins in part because they scored just once in three red-zone opportunities.
The team’s running game also remained stuck in the mud, gaining just 60 yards on 16 carries. The Raiders’ 75.2 rushing yards per game rank last in the NFL.
“(We) want to pick up in the red zone,” coach Antonio Pierce said. “And I’m going to go back to it, you want to see the running game get going. Just need that balance.”
Broncos present challenge
The Raiders’ task gets tougher in Week 12 against the Broncos (6-5). Denver was giving up 16.6 points per game entering Thursday, the third-fewest in the NFL.
The Raiders learned how difficult the Broncos are to play firsthand in a 34-18 loss Oct. 6.
“They were tough when we played them the first time,” Minshew said. “They’re doing a great job rushing right now, and they’re challenging on the back end, playing with a lot of confidence, man. So they present a great challenge.”
Denver leads the NFL with 39 sacks. It’s also allowing opponents to gain just 3.9 yards per carry against them, the fourth-lowest figure in the league.
“They’re flying around on defense,” Turner said. “They’ve got a lot of different guys that they try to create matchups for that can get to the quarterback.”
That means the Raiders need to find solutions fast. Their running game has struggled, and they’ve allowed the sixth-most sacks in the NFL (33).
“You don’t want to hold the ball against this group,” Turner said. “We’re going to have some certain things to try to take advantage of what we think are good matchups for us.”
OL must step up
A key for the Raiders is getting their offensive line to build off last week’s performance.
One positive is the five-man group against the Dolphins will likely remain intact against the Broncos. The Raiders have had a hard time keeping the same starting five in consecutive games because of injuries up front.
“When you’ve got continuity, chemistry, all those words go together,” Pierce said. “And it really helps out not just your o-line group, but the offense because you don’t have these mistakes and mental errors that we had early in the season.”
A little stability could go a long way for the Raiders against the Broncos. But it will still be a challenge for the offense to snap the team’s six-game losing streak.
Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on X