Oakland Raiders 17, Tennessee Titans 10
Here are the biggest takeaways and highest-graded players from Oakland’s 17-10 road victory over Tennessee in Week 3.
Quarterback grade: Derek Carr, 71.3
Carr pushes through an up-and-down day
An average showing from Derek Carr, who had both good and bad moments; he completed 21-of-35 passes, but three of those incompletions were dropped and only five of the completions came on passes thrown more than 10 yards in the air. When pressured, he managed to complete seven of his 13 passes, including an eighth that was on target but dropped.
Top offensive grades:
FB Jamize Olawale, 83.3
WR Michael Crabtree, 82.9
RT Menelik Watson, 78.7
RG Vadal Alexander, 73.9
QB Derek Carr, 71.3
Carr-to-Crabtree captains Raiders ship
Carr threw to Michael Crabtree 11 times and of those 8 were completed for 102 yards, including a timely reception late in the game and a deep completion down the field for 29 yards. Crabtree was the star for the Raiders’ offense.
Top defensive grades:
CB David Amerson, 97.9
CB Sean Smith, 90.2
S Reggie Nelson, 85.1
S Karl Joseph, 82.5
ED Khalil Mack, 77.7
Secondary shuts down Titans passing offense
Four of Oakland’s top five performers Sunday came in the secondary, where they had ample success against second-year QB Marcus Mariota and the Titans receiving group. Amerson had easily the best game of the unit, and one of the top performances we’ve seen from a corner this season, surrendering a catch on just four of 11 targets for 38 yards, while getting his hands on five of the incompletions. Sean Smith was likewise excellent, picking off a pass in the fourth quarter and otherwise allowing just one of six targets to be completed. Mariota finished with a 0.0 passer rating on those seven throws into Smith’s coverage.
At safety, both Reggie Nelson and rookie Karl Joseph also stood out — Nelson for his work in coverage, where he finished with one pass defense and a second-quarter interception where he took advantage of Amerson’s initial breakup. Conversely, Joseph did the bulk of his positive work in run defense.
Quarterback grade: Marcus Mariota, 42.7
Mariota struggles with turnovers once again
Rough day for Mariota, who was called for a false start penalty early and put the ball at risk several times, whether it was his fumble on a scramble in the second quarter, or his two interceptions where his-placement gave Oakland defenders great shots at the ball. He looked most comfortable during the two minute drill at the end of the game, moving the ball effectively and throwing a dime to WR Tajae Sharpe at 1:08 of the fourth, but otherwise did little despite facing a fairly low amount of pressure from Oakland’s defensive line.
Top offensive grades:
LT Taylor Lewan, 86.2
RB DeMarco Murray, 83.2
C Ben Jones, 82.8
FB Jalston Fowler, 80.7
LG Quinton Spain, 80.5
Run game a positive in an otherwise poor offensive display
Although it wasn’t enough to make up for turnovers and a lack of passing game, the Titans had no trouble moving the ball on the ground, with RB DeMarco Murray gaining 114 yards over 16 carries (7.1 average) and forcing six missed tackles in the process. The offensive line collectively played well in both facets to create those openings, but LT Taylor Lewan deserves the most credit for his performance, apart from his costly penalty near the end of the game. Lewan made multiple key blocks on the edge and at the second level — including in the fourth, when he moved Raiders end Jihad Ward several yards downfield, creating an easy first down lane for Murray
Top defensive grades:
CB Jason McCourty, 89.1
DE Brian Orakpo, 87.6
DT Al Woods, 80.1
DT Jurrell Casey, 80.1
LB Sean Spence, 79.9
Early play dooms Titans defense
Tennessee’s defense held steady throughout the game but some plays given up in the first half and the coverage shortfall of Parrish Cox were too much to overcome. Tennessee had some great defensive play from Brian Orakpo, however, who was an absolute menace in the backfield of the Raiders, especially rushing Carr. He did most of his damage when lining up on the right side of the offensive formation, where he compiled five pressures working against tackle Donald Penn. In the secondary, Parrish Cox struggled for the Titans, surrendering five completions on nine targets for 85 yards and ultimately the Carr to Crabtree connection was a bit much for the Titans to overcome.
PFF Game-Ball Winner: Raiders CB David Amerson
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