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Week 8 Game Recap: Oakland Raiders 10, Baltimore Ravens 29
What you need to know
| Oakland Raiders |
Just when you think they're about to turn it around and get it all together, the Raiders are beaten by 19 points. The score was a bit deceiving though, since the Raiders passing game was without any supplemental running game whatsoever.
QB JaMarcus Russell was impressive, completing nearly half of his passes for 228 yards, one TD, and one interception. With no running game to speak of, the defense was keyed in on Russell for most of the game and he did what he could to try and carry the Raiders to victory.
The Raiders running game was nearly non-existent, with Justin Fargas getting the starting nod after Darren McFadden was pronounced out with an injury. Fargas and fellow running back Michael Bush could get nothing going against the stout Ravens defense, which proved again to be one of the best run defenses in the league.
Besides breakout wide receiver Chaz Schilens and tight end Zach Miller, none of the other Raiders receivers stood out much, although they did contribute. Combined, Schilens and Miller hauled in five passes for 132 yards which ended up being 56% of the Raiders total offensive yardage on the day.
| Baltimore Ravens |
Following an impressive win over the Dolphins last week, the Ravens did exactly what many expected them to against the Raiders. They shut down the running game, contained the passing game, and scored enough points early on to keep the game out of reach.
QB Joe Flacco completed exactly half of his passes for 140 yards and one touchdown. A la: Exactly what the Ravens needed him to do -- no more, no less.
Running backs Willis McGahee, Ray Rice, and Le'Ron McClain worked well to complement one another, rushing a combined 38 times for 154 yards and one TD. McGahee got the bulk of the carries (with 23) while Rice and McClain had eight and seven, respectively.
None of the Ravens wide receivers had what you could call a standout day, save for Demetrius Williams. Williams' 70 yards and one touchdown all came on just one reception, which was in large part due to a blown coverage by the Raiders' secondary.
What you ought to know
| QB JaMarcus Russell, Pass: 15 - 33 - 228 - 1 TD / 1 INT, Rush: 1 - 13 - 0 |
Russell did his best to keep the Raiders in the game with his arm, but without any semblance of a running game, the Ravens defense ended up being too tough to overcome. Against such a strong defense, and without any risk of the running game producing, the LSU alum had a very respectable day in the wake of the aforementioned conditions. Although the offense is far from clicking and becoming a consistent, explosive unit, Russell appears to be progressing very well in his first full year as a starting QB.
| RB Justin Fargas, Rush: 12 - 24 - 0 |
Fargas was held to two yards per carry and was completely ineffective along with Michael Bush. He was only given 12 carries, 11 of which came in the first half. In fact, the Raiders only rushed four times total in the second half of the game. Fargas didn't show much with the carries he was given in the first half, so the Raiders must have realized they weren't getting anywhere in the game by running the ball. Its unlikely Fargas would have cracked fifty yards even if the team continued running in the third and fourth quarter, but that is more of a testament to the Ravens rushing defenses than a detrimental statement about Fargas.
| RB Michael Bush, Rush: 5 - 8 - 0, Rec: 1 - 9 - 0 (2 targets) |
The "other" Bush was nearly non-existent in the game. He only gained eight yards on just five carries, but also tacked on nine yards with his only reception. You'd be hard pressed to find anything positive from his day, but 17 total yards is better than none.
| RB Justin Griffith, Rush: 1 - 2 - 0, Rec: 1 - 2 - 1 (2 targets) |
Griffith both ran and caught the ball once, gaining a total of two years on each. However his passing reception was for a touchdown, which made his overall stat line slightly more impressive.
| RB Darren McFadden |
McFadden was a late game scratch due to his lingering toe injury and did not play in Week Eight.
| WR Chaz Schilens, Rec: 3 - 76 - 0 (5 targets) |
Schilens continued his campaign for the Raiders WR1 spot on Sunday, hauling in three receptions (the most on the team) for 76 yards.
| WR Ronald Curry, Rec: 2 - 13 - 0 (4 targets) |
Curry only managed to convert half of his targets into receptions, finishing the day with 13 yards and two receptions.
| WR Javon Walker, Rec: 2 - 28 - 0 (4 targets) |
Walker finished with the third most receiving yards on the team Sunday, tallying up 28 yards on just two receptions. He's still being targeted, but no longer as much as some of the other receivers on the team.
| WR Johnnie Lee Higgins, Rec: 2 - 16 - 0 (3 targets) |
Higgins played a bit role on offense along with fellow wide out Ronald Curry, hauling in two balls for just 16 yards.
| WR Ashley Lelie, Rec: 1 - 23 - 0 (6 targets) |
Lelie was the most targeted receiver on the day but managed to finish the day with the least receptions. The one pass he hauled in did go for 23 yards however. He is tied along with tight end Zach Miller for the most targets on the team thus far with 33.
| TE Zach Miller, Rec: 2 - 56 - 0 (5 targets) |
Although Miller only caught two balls on Sunday, those balls went for a total of 56 yards. He was targeted five times on the day and is tied for most on the team along with Ashley Lelie with 33.
| PK Sebastian Janikowski 1 - 1 FG, 1 - 1 XP, 4 points |
Janikowski converted both his extra point attempt and 22 yard field goal. The two attempts were his only ones for the day.
| OAK Rush Defense |
The Raiders rush defense could not stop the Ravens trio of running backs, allowing them to rush for a combined 154 yards and one touchdown. It was definitely not the best day the unit has had to date.
| OAK Pass Defense |
Although rookie QB Joe Flacco was held to 140 yards, a blown coverage assignment accounted for exactly half of those yards. It also resulted in a total of seven points for the Ravens.
| QB Joe Flacco, Pass: 12 - 24 - 140 - 1 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 4 - 23 - 1, Rec: 1 - 43 - 0 (1 targets) |
Flacco did exactly what he needed to in managing the game, which in turn opened up the running game. He looks to be progressing steadily and also appears to be more and more comfortable with each and every start. Perhaps the most important stat for the rookie QB was that he threw zero interceptions on the day. He also caught a trick-play pass from backup QB Troy Smith which was a trip up away from a touchdown, and showed his mobility with a 13 yard scamper for a rushing TD.
| QB Troy Smith, Pass: 1 - 1 - 43 - 0 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 3 - 13 - 0 |
Smith ran three times for 13 yards and completed a trick pass play to Joe Flacco for 43 yards on his only passing attempt. It appears the Ravens are planning on using Smith and his mobility in the Joshua Cribbs (Browns) and Ronnie Brown (Dolphins) mismatched formations mold.
| RB Willis McGahee, Rush: 23 - 58 - 1, Rec: 2 - -1 - 0 (3 targets) |
McGahee was given the bulk of the overall carries (about 60%) and although he only had 58 yards rushing, he did score one touchdown. He looks healthy and like his former shifty self, and it also appears that the Ravens organization still has full confidence in him as their number one RB.
| RB Ray Rice, Rush: 8 - 64 - 0, Rec: 3 - 37 - 0 (3 targets) |
After a vanilla start to the season, Rice has really come on during the past few weeks. In Sunday's game against the Raiders he had 64 rushing yards on eight attempts and 37 receiving yards on three receptions. Not a bad day fantasy wise.
| RB LeRon McClain, Rush: 7 - 32 - 0, Rec: 1 - 1 - 0 (4 targets) |
McClain did what he's done all year on Sunday, and that is run powerfully and downhill. He racked up a 4.6 yards per carry average on seven attempts (32 yards) and apparently showed enough while Willis McGahee was injured to warrant the coaching staff to stick with a three-headed rushing attack. McClain and Rice each bring different things to the table and although a three back RBBC is incredibly uncommon, it is perhaps the perfect complement to their game-managing, rookie QB, Joe Flacco.
| WR Derrick Mason, Rec: 1 - 3 - 0 (5 targets) |
Despite being targeted the most on the team with five targets, Mason only managed to catch one ball for 3 yards.
| WR Mark Clayton, Rush: 1 - 2 - 0 (1 targets) |
Clayton was active for week eight despite being listed as questionable. He did not manage to contribute anything and was only targeted once. It is still unclear on whether the reason he was listed on the injury report had anything to do with his poor day.
| WR Demetrius Williams, Rec: 1 - 70 - 1 (3 targets) |
Williams only caught one of his three targets, and it was quite the doozy. The catch went for 70 yards and a touchdown but was due primarily to a Ravens' defensive backs blown coverage. Still, the catch, yards, and touchdown will all go into the history books.
| TE Todd Heap, Rec: 2 - 17 - 0 (3 targets) |
Heap caught two passes for 17 yards for the day. His 2008 season is quickly becoming severely disappointing, although his production is expected to increase as rookie QB Joe Flacco learns the ropes as a signal caller.
| TE Daniel Wilcox, Rec: 2 - 13 - 0 (2 targets) |
Wilcox managed to catch both of his targets for 13 receiving yards.
| PK Matt Stover 2 - 2 FG, 3 - 3 XP, 9 points |
Stover converted on both of his field goal attempts, including a long one for 38 yards. He also kicked all three of his extra point attempts straight thru the uprights.
| BAL Rush Defense |
The Ravens rushing defense proved without a doubt that they are the top rushing defense in the league on Sunday. They held all Raiders running backs to just 34 yards and forced the Raiders coaches to completely abandon the game in the second half.
| BAL Pass Defense |
While the passing defense didn't shut down the Raiders passing attack entirely, they definitely contained it and picked off one of JaMarcus Russell's 33 passes.