Graney: Without Adams, Raiders need to get creative on offense
Seven different receivers had receptions. Seven different players had carries. Five had at least 10 yards on the ground.
And the Raiders beat the Browns 20-16 last week.
The team’s offense wasn’t too imaginative the first three weeks of the season. The Raiders couldn’t run a lick. Their passing game, outside of the fourth quarter of their Week 2 win in Baltimore, was inconsistent.
Things changed against the Browns. The Raiders found a rhythm. A sense of flow. They became more creative in how they were attacking the defense. They weren’t as predictable.
The Raiders were also playing without star wide receiver Davante Adams, who was out with a hamstring injury and likely will be again Sunday in Denver. It became an all-hands-on-deck scenario. Maybe that’s why things worked so well.
“I mean, any time you can make them defend everybody, that’s going to help you,” offensive coordinator Luke Getsy said. “We talk about it all the time, finding guys that can do a bunch of different things. And the more of those guys you have, the more the defense has to be accountable for it.
“I guess the short answer is, yes, any time you can include everybody in this thing, it’s really important to make the defense defend every blade of grass. That’s what we’re trying to do, whether it’s with one guy doing a bunch of different things or a bunch of guys doing things that they do really well.”
Speed kills
The Raiders watched wide receivers Tre Tucker and DJ Turner score rushing touchdowns last week on a reverse and a sweep, respectively. Speed kills and they both have it.
That doesn’t mean they’ll be able to make an impact on the ground every week. Each game is unique.
But the Raiders need their running game to be consistent if they want to continue to improve as an offense. It was easy to see what was possible when quarterback Gardner Minshew got the group into the right calls, when the offensive line blocked well and when the team’s playmakers were able to break some tackles.
“Yeah, I think we’re still figuring out what we do well, and I think we got guys that are really good on the edge that we got to get the ball to,” Minshew said. “I think that really helps our run game, too, when we get stuff moving side to side. So I think that was really important, and I think we’ll just continue to grow and understand what we are and build on that.”
Minshew wasn’t accurate against the Browns, completing just 14 of his 24 passes for 130 yards.
He needs to be better to give the Raiders a chance to win each and every game. The team can’t rely only on its running attack, just as it couldn’t rely only on its passing game the first three weeks of the season.
Opportunity will continue to knock for Tucker and Turner with Adams out. Jakobi Meyers may become the Raiders’ No. 1 wide receiver, but the team will need other players to step up.
It would help if one or both of Tucker and Turner could become a consistent deep threat. Getsy says stretching the field is all about the timing, the rhythm and the decision making of both the route runner and the quarterback. About how critical chemistry is between the two players.
That it’s much like the relationship between a right guard and tackle and how important it is that both are on the same page.
More creative
“Being where you’re supposed to be when you’re supposed to be there,” Getsy said. “And the quarterback putting it where you can go get it, too.
“That stuff is just going to continue to get better. I love the aggressiveness of everybody in the attack. I think everyone’s buying in and believing.”
Things got more creative last week. More imagination.
It’s a step in the right direction.
Ed Graney, a Sigma Delta Chi Award winner for sports column writing, can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com. He can be heard on “The Press Box,” ESPN Radio 100.9 FM and 1100 AM, from 7 to 10 a.m. Monday through Friday. Follow @edgraney on X.