Author: jhawkes51

The Sunday Spotlight: Rookies and the defense aid Ravens in 34-17 win over Raiders

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Photo credit: @Ravens

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

Rookie quarterback Lamar Jackson threw for a score and ran for another, and linebacker Terrell Suggs returned a fumble 43 yards for a touchdown helping the Ravens dispatch the visiting Oakland Raiders, 34-17 on Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium.

Rookie running back Gus Edwards rushed for 118 yards on 23 carries, his second-straight game that he’s rushed for over 100 yards. Edwards, who went undrafted in this year’s NFL draft out of Rutgers, rushed for 115 yards on 17 carries last week in Baltimore’s 24-21 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.

Ravens backup cornerback Cyrus Jones took a punt 70 yards to for a touchdown that helped the Ravens (6-5) win for back-to-back games for the first time since September.

The Ravens would carry a 13-10 halftime lead into the locker room.

On the Ravens’ first drive in the third quarter, Jackson would lead the Ravens on a 13-play, 75-yard drive in 6:50 that ended in a 5-yard scoring run by the Louisville product that pushed Baltimore’s lead to 20-10.

Following a Derek Carr 16-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jared Cook (who made an unbelievable one-handed catch as he’s falling to the ground) that cut Baltimore’s lead to 20-17, Jackson would engineer a 17-play, 71-yard drive that chewed up 8:51 off the clock that was capped off by an 8-yard slant-route touchdown catch by former Raiders wide receiver Michael Crabtree that extended the Ravens’ lead to 27-17.

Crabtree, who was cut in the offseason by Oakland, finished with three catches for 21 yards on six targets.

Baltimore relied heavily on the running game that kept the Raiders off balance for most of the day, as Jackson led Baltimore on two touchdown drives that consumed 16 minutes of game time stretching from the third into the fourth quarter.

Oakland’s 31st-ranked running defense couldn’t stop the Ravens on Sunday, allowing 242 rushing yards on 43 attempts.

Jackson, who started at quarterback for the second-straight week in place of regular starter Joe Flacco whose been dealing with a injured right hip, did throw two interceptions on passes that were tipped but otherwise, played efficiently for Baltimore.

After not recording a sack through three quarters, the Ravens finally started to get pressure on Carr, sacking the Raiders starting quarterback on three-straight plays in the fourth quarter. Ravens linebacker Matthew Judon, who entered Week 12 with just three sacks on the season, recorded all three sacks on Carr.

Judon’s first sack resulted in a Carr fumble that was quickly scooped up by linebacker Terrell Suggs who then raced 43 yards for a touchdown that made the score 34-17, ending any hope for the Raiders.

Carr threw for 194 yards and one touchdown on 16-of-34 passes for Oakland (2-9), who scored a touchdown on their first possession for the second-straight week. Carr led Oakland on a 12-play, 81-yard drive in 6:15 that included a 30-yard completion to backup tight end Lee Smith on fourth-and-1 that was capped off by running back Doug Martin’s 1-yard touchdown run.

The scoring play for Martin was his first of the season for the Silver and Black. Martin scored his last touchdown last October as a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Martin recorded 72 yards total (51 rushing and 21 receiving) on 14 touches (11 rushes and 3 catches) for the game. Second-year wide receiver Marcell Ateman was the only other Raider with three catches, finishing with just 21 yards. Ateman led the team with 10 targets.

Wide receiver Seth Roberts led Oakland with 54 yards receiving on two catches. Roberts’ 44-yard catch from Carr in the third quarter would setup tight end Jared Cook’s 16-yard touchdown catch that made the score 20-10 following a 5-yard touchdown run by Jackson to begin the third quarter.

For the second straight week, the Raiders’ defense recorded two interceptions with safeties Reggie Nelson and Marcus Gilchrist each notching a takeaway.

Linebacker Tahir Whitehead recorded 14 tackles and linebacker Nicholas Morrow recorded just the 10th sack by Oakland this season in the first quarter.

On Sunday, Dec. 2, the Raiders return home to face the Kansas City Chiefs for the first time this season. Kansas City (9-2) who is currently on a bye week, leads the AFC West and are coming off a wild 54-51 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Nov. 18 in a game that was originally set to take place at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.

The Ravens will travel to Atlanta to take on the Falcons in Week 13.

Raiders travel to the East Coast to face the Ravens

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Photo credit: reviewjournal.com

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — The Raiders hit the road once again as they will travel East to take on a tough Baltimore Ravens team to close out Thanksgiving Weekend. The Week 12 matchup will mark the fourth consecutive year that the two teams have clashed, with Oakland winning two of the last three contests, including a thrilling 28-27 victory in 2016 at M&T Bank Stadium. Baltimore won last year’s meeting 30-17 in Oakland.

Kickoff for the 11th meeting is this Sunday, Nov. 25 at 10:00 a.m. PT. The Ravens lead the all-time series, 7-3.

Last week, the Raiders (2-8) defeated the Arizona Cardinals 23-21 at State Farm Stadium.

Raiders quarterback Derek Carr earned his 15th career fourth quarter comeback, engineering an impressive 9-play, 63-yard drive in the final minutes of the game, capped off by rookie kicker Daniel Carlson’s 35-yard game-winning field goal through the uprights as time expired.

The win snapped Oakland’s five-game losing streak and more importantly, shinned a little light on what has been a dark season for the Silver and Black with the losses mounting up week after week.

Carr finished the game completing 19-of-31 passes for 191 yards and two touchdowns and no interceptions with a 100.6 passer rating. His two touchdowns against the Cardinals moved him past Rich Gannon (114) for third on the club’s all-time list with 115, trailing only Daryle Lamonica (148) and Ken Stabler (150).

For Carlson, his three made field goals on the day from 49 (career-long), 21, and 35 yards (first career game-winner) earned him AFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors. His 11 points (two made extra points) were also a career-high and were the most among kickers in the AFC in Week 11.

Defensively, cornerback Gareon Conley and safety Karl Joseph each recorded an interception that led to touchdowns on ensuing drives, and rookie defensive tackle Maurice Hurst tallied a sack for the second consecutive week, bringing his total to four on the season and elevating him to second among rookie defenders in the NFL.

After coming of their bye week, the Ravens defeated their AFC North rivals, the Cincinnati Bengals 24-21 in Week 11 at M&T Bank Stadium snapping their three-game losing streak.

Baltimore’s offense was paced by two rookies in quarterback Lamar Jackson and running back Gus Edwards.

Jackson did throw one interception in the game, but showed why he was a dual-threat quarterback at Louisville, completing 13-of-19 passes for 150 yards and rushing for 119 yards on 26 carries (team-high) in his first career start in place of franchise quarterback Joe Flacco. Flacco was inactive for last week’s game due to a injured hip.

Edwards, an undrafted rookie from Rutgers University, rushed for a career-high 115 yards on 17 carries and one touchdown.

Following Sunday’s game, the Raiders will return home for two weeks to take on two first-place teams in the AFC, as they will host their AFC West rivals the Kansas City Chiefs (9-2) in Week 13, and the Pittsburgh Steelers (7-2-1) in Week 14.

The Ravens (5-5) who trail the Steelers in the AFC North, hit the road for back-to-back games against the Atlanta Falcons (4-6) in Week 13 and the Chiefs in Week 14.

Raiders travel to Arizona for a Week 11 matchup with the Cardinals

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Photo credit: azcentral.com

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — The Raiders hit the road for Week 11 as they will travel to the desert to face the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on Sunday, November 18. Kickoff is set for 1:05 p.m.  PT. Oakland and Arizona have rarely played each other during the regular season as this is just the 10th meeting between these two clubs, with the Raiders holding a 5-4 edge over the Cardinals all-time.

However, the Cardinals are riding a two-game winning streak over the Raiders, winning the last regular season meeting, 24-13 in 2014 at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum and by a closer margin, 24-23 in 2010, which is the last time the Raiders traveled to Arizona.

Last week, the Raiders fell to the Los Angeles Chargers 20-6 in Week 10 at home. The loss, was Oakland’s fifth in a row dropping the Silver and Black to 1-8 on the season, the third-worst start in franchise history. Only the team’s 0-13 start in 1962 and the 0-10 start in 2014 have been worse, per the Elias Sports Bureau.

Raiders quarterback Derek Carr threw for 243 yards on 24-of-37 attempts in the contest, surpassing 17,000 passing yards for his career. Carr became just the third quarterback in franchise history to throw for 17,000 yards, joining Rich Gannon and the Hall of Famer, the late Ken Stabler.

Running back Jalen Richard had a team-high five catches for 52 yards. it was the fifth-straight game that Richard has led the Raiders in catches. For the season, Richard has 48 receptions.

Defensively, safety Marcus Gilchrist tallied his first interception in Silver and Black, while rookie defensive tackle Maurice Hurst notched his third sack of the year. Hurst’s three sacks are tied for fifth-most among rookie defenders this season.

In Week 10, the Arizona Cardinals (2-7) lost on the road to the Kansas City Chiefs 26-14 at Arrowhead Stadium. Cardinals rookie quarterback Josh Rosen completed 22-of-39 for 208 passing yards, with one touchdown and two interceptions. Running back David Johnson rushed for 98 yards on 21 carries, and scored two touchdowns on the ground and in the air. Johnson also led the Cardinals with seven receptions for 85 yards.

Wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, who will be walking into the Hall of Fame once his career is over, finished with six catches for 50 yards and passed newly-minted Hall of Fame wide receiver Terrell Owens for No. 2 on the NFL’s career receiving yardage list in the closing minutes, per the Elias Sports Bureau.

Now in his 15th season, Fitzgerald has amassed 15,952 receiving yards in his career, trailing only Hall of Famer Jerry Rice. Rice racked up 22,895 receiving yards during his stellar 20-year career.

Following Sunday’s game, the Raiders will head East during the Thanksgiving Weekend when they take on the Baltimore Ravens. The Week 12 matchup will mark the fourth-straight season that the two clubs will meet in the regular season.

The Cardinals will travel to Carson, Calif. to take on the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 12.

Raiders three-point stance: Three takeaways from the Raiders’ home loss to the Chargers

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Photo credit: @TheSportsNotes

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — For the second-straight game, the Raiders failed to score a touchdown while looking inept in their 20-6 loss to the visiting Los Angeles Chargers Sunday at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in front of 54,750 fans on Sunday afternoon. At 7-2, the Chargers have now won six straight games (four straight in the series after sweeping the season-series), while the loss for Oakland (1-8), extends their losing streak to five games.

Bottom line: the Raiders are beyond a mediocre football team. They are a complete mess. The team has been outscored 75-9 in the third quarter during the five-game losing streak, and have lost by at least 14 points in all five games.

Checkout my takeaways from today’s game below.

Quotable: “This will be a year that a lot of us will never forget,” Raiders head coach Jon Gruden said postgame. “It’s painful. It’s really hard. It’s painful. It’s going to be hard to sleep again, hard to get up in the morning.”

Derek Carr is getting sacked way too much this year
One week after being sacked seven times by the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium, Raiders quarterback Derek Carr was sacked four times by the Chargers on Sunday. Carr did complete 24-of-37 passes for 243 yards, but faced constant pressure from the Chargers for much of the day.

Through nine games, Carr has been sacked 28 times this season, tied for third-most in the league with Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott.  With seven more games to go, its a safe bet that Carr will be sacked more times this season than he was in 2015 where he was sacked 31 times according to ESPN Stats and Information.

The only game where Carr wasn’t sacked this season was in Oakland’s 42-28 loss to the visiting Indianapolis Colts back in Week 8.

Even in the loss, Carr did become just the third quarterback in Raiders franchise history to throw for 17,000 yards, joining Rich Gannon (17,585) and the Hall of Famer Ken Stabler (19,078). Carr entered Sunday’s game with 16,888 passing yards now  at 17,131 yards.

Melvin Gordon is a nightmare for the Raiders
Chargers running back Melvin Gordon continues to be a thorn in the Raiders’ side and it was on full display Sunday.

Gordon finished with 23 touches for 165 yards of total offense. The former Wisconsin Badger devoured the Raiders’ 32nd rush defense, carrying the ball 18 times for 93 yards.

Gordon was also hard to contain through the air for Oakland.

On the Chargers’ first possession of the second half, Gordon took a dump-off pass from quarterback Philip Rivers, broke a tackle by cornerback Gareon Conley, juked safety Reggie Nelson and raced 66 yards for a touchdown that extended Los Angeles’ lead to 17-3 after entering halftime with a 10-3 lead.

Rivers completed 18-of-26 passes for 223 yards with two touchdowns and one interception.

Gordon finished with five catches for 72 yards and one touchdown. In the Chargers’ 26-10 victory over the Raiders in Week 5, Gordon tormented the Raiders for 120 yards of total offense (58 rushing and 62 receiving) and one touchdown.

The game was smoky
Due to wild fires from Butte County, located 150 miles north from Oakland, the air quality for the game was at unhealthy level. The Air Quality was at 159 at kickoff,  which is in the unhealthy zone, and smoke could be smelled throughout the stadium and even in the press box. The NFL had monitored the situation but the AQI never got near 200, the level where the game would have needed to be moved.

Up next for Oakland: a trip to Arizona to face the 2-7 Cardinals next week, who lost to the Raiders’ bitter rival the Kansas City Chiefs 26-14 at Arrowhead Stadium today.

The Chargers will return home for their second-straight game within the division as they will host the Denver Broncos (3-6) at StubHub Center.

Raiders to face Chargers Sunday at the Coliseum

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Photo credit: @ChargersRHenne

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — The Raiders will return home to the Oakland-Alameda Coliseum this Sunday as they welcome the visiting Los Angeles Chargers to town in a Week 10 battle between these AFC West rivals. The 118th matchup between these two teams will kickoff at 1:05 p.m. PT, with the Silver and Black holding a 62-53-2 edge over the Chargers all-time, but the Chargers have won the last three meetings.

The Chargers defeated the Raiders 26-10 at StubHub Center in Week 5 and are going for the sweep in the two-game season series.

Oakland is coming off a humbling 34-3 loss on the road against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 9. In the game, the Raiders (1-7) scored on their first possession behind a 37-yard field goal by rookie kicker Daniel Carlson, but saw the 49ers (2-7) score 34 unanswered points. Starting quarterback Derek Carr completed 16-of-21 passes for 171 yards while posting a 99.5 passer rating.  On the season, Carr has completion rating of 72.3, which ranks second in the NFL.

Oakland’s offense registered just 242 yards against the 49ers, who sacked Carr seven times in the game.

Linebacker Tahir Whitehead had a team-high six tackles (five solo and one assisted) for Oakland. Four of Whitehead’s tackles were for losses. On the season, Whitehead leads the team with 57 total tackles (42 solo and 15 assisted).

The Chargers (6-2), are off to their best start since 2006 and have won five straight games.

Last Sunday, the Chargers went into noisy CenturyLink Field and defeated the Seattle Seahawks 25-17. Chargers starting quarterback Philip Rivers completed 13-of-26 passes for 228 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions against Seattle. In his 15th season, Rivers continues to put up big numbers, throwing for 2,236 yards with 19 touchdowns to just three interceptions.

Against the Seahawks, starting running back Melvin Gordon had plenty of running lanes to run through rushing for 113 yards on 16 carries and one touchdowns. Through the Chargers’ eight games this season, Gordon ranks sixth among all running backs in the NFL with 579 yards and seven touchdowns.

Wide receiver Keenan Allen had a big day in Seattle, hauling in six passes for 124 yards, his first 100-yard receiving day since Week 1. Despite just having just one touchdown this season (which also occurred in Week 1), Allen leads the team with 47 receptions for 630 yards.

Fellow wide receivers Tyrell Williams and Mike Williams (no relation), are tied for the team-high with five touchdowns apiece.

Following Sunday’s game, the Raiders will head to Arizona to face the Cardinals. The Chargers will return home to take on the Denver Broncos, their second-straight game within the division.

Raiders head to Santa Clara for ‘Battle of the Bay’ with 49ers on Thursday Night Football

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Photo credit: sports.yahoo.com

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — In a matchup that doesn’t have that much sizzle outside of the Bay Area, the Raiders will travel to Santa Clara, Calif to take on the San Francisco 49ers in primetime on Thursday Night Football on Nov. 1 with a 5:20 p.m. PT  kickoff from Levi’s Stadium.

This is the first regular season matchup between to the franchises since 2014, in which the Raiders (1-6) won that meeting 24-13 at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. The game would turn out to be one of Derek Carr’s greatest games, who as a rookie, had his best single-game passer rating (140.2) through his first five seasons. Carr completed 22-of-28 passes for 254 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions.

The two teams have locked up in the regular season 13 times, with the Raiders holding a 7-6 record all-time against the 49ers.

The Silver and Black enter Week 9 coming off a 42-28 loss to the Indianapolis Colts at home, where Carr posted his third-highest career passer rating (136.6) after completing 21-of-28 passes for 244 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Carr was responsible for all four of Oakland’s touchdowns, with him adding his first career rushing touchdown.

San Francisco (1-7) lost to the Arizona Cardinals 18-15 on Sunday. The Cardinals scored 15 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to complete the two-game season-season against the 49ers. Arizona defeated San Francisco 28-18 at Levi’s Stadium thanks in large part to five turnovers by the Red and Gold.

49ers quarterback C.J. Beathard completed 14-of-28 passes for 190 yards and one touchdown, a 55-yard strike to wide receiver Marquise Goodwin in the third quarter that gave the 49ers a 12-3 lead.

Wide receiver Kendrick Bourne led San Francisco with seven catches for 71 yards on 10 targets.

Following the game, the Raiders will have a 10-day break before returning home to face their AFC West rival, the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 10 to complete their two-game season-series. The Chargers defeated Oakland 26-10 in Week 5 down at StubHub Center in Carson, Calif.

San Francisco will stay home for another primetime game when they host the New York Giants on Monday Night Football on Nov. 12 to complete Week 10’s action.

Raiders’ three-point stance: Three takeaways from the Raiders’ 42-28 loss to the Colts

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Photo credit: @Raiders

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — In the battle between two of the NFL’s most promising quarterbacks, Andrew Luck got the better of Derek Carr as the Indianapolis Colts traveled to the West Coast and defeated the Raiders 42-28 on Sunday in front of 54,372 fans at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on Sunday in Week 8.

Oakland finished with 347 yards of total offense and was 4-of-8 on third downs, but  couldn’t overcome running back Doug Martin’s (13 carries for 72 yards) fumble late in the fourth quarter in Oakland’s territory that was recovered by Indianapolis.

The Colts would capitalize on the game’s only turnover by adding another touchdown that put the game away for good for Indianapolis.

With the loss, Oakland’s streak of 16 straight wins in which they scored 21+ points in a game is snapped.

Checkout my three takeaways from Oakland’s sixth loss in their last five games:

Derek Carr quieted his critics, for now.
With Khalil Mack and Amari Cooper traded away for first-round draft picks in separate trades that pretty much cemented the Raiders were heading for a rebuild, the talk of trading Carr was growing louder by the moment.

For the first time this season, it appeared that Carr looked completely comfortable operating in the pocket. Carr finished the game completing 21-of-28 passes for 244 yards and accounted for all four of Oakland’s touchdowns (3 passing, 1 rushing). He finished the game with a blistering 136.6 passer rating and for the first time this season, wasn’t sacked in a game.

Carr tossed touchdowns to tight end Jared Cook (4 catches for 74 yards), and wide receivers Brandon LaFell (3 catches for 39 yards) and Seth Roberts (2 catches for 42 yards).

Running back Jalen Richard was Carr’s leading receiver, catching eight passes for 50 yards. Richard and the aforementioned Martin are expected to be the lead running backs with Marshawn Lynch on injured reserve with a groin injury.

I think its pretty safe to say that Carr won’t be going anywhere and will stay put once Tuesday’s NFL trading deadline at 1:00 p.m PT passes. Reports surfaced early Sunday that the organization “reassured” that Carr wasn’t going to be traded.

Colts’ offense looked effortless.
After throwing four touchdowns in last week’s 37-5 victory for the Colts over the Buffalo Bills in Indianapolis, Colts quarterback Andrew Luck threw three touchdowns against the Raiders. Sunday’s game marked the fifth straight game that Luck has thrown three or more touchdowns.

All three of Luck’s scores went to tight ends, as Jack Doyle (6 catches for 70 yards), Eric Ebron (3 catches for 37 yards) and Mo Alie-Cox (1 catch for 26 yards) each had a touchdown reception. Alie-Cox’s touchdown was a thing of beauty, catching it with one hand to give the Colts a 7-0 lead on the team’s first possession of the game.

Indianapolis racked up 461 yards of total offense, picked up 28 first downs, converted on 9-of-13 on third down, and dominated the time of possession holding onto the football for 36:30 to just 23:30 for the Raiders.

The game featured three punts, one by Indianapolis and two by Oakland.

Second-year running back Marlon Mack has established himself as the Colts’ lead ball carrier. Mack led a Colts’ ground game that rushed for 222 yards, their second straight game rushing for 200 yards this season. Per the Elias Sports Bureau, the Colts haven’t had back-to-back 200-yard rushing games in a season since 1985.

Mack, who finished with a career-high 132 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries, has rushed for 100+ yards in back-to-back weeks after rushing for 126 yards on 19 carries (previous career-highs) and a touchdown last week against the Buffalo Bills.

Backup running back Nyheim Hines carried the ball 11 times for 78 yards.

Adam Vinatieri becomes the NFL’s all-time scorer, passing Hall of Famer Morten Andersen.
Vinatieri set the record as the NFL’s top all-time scorer in the first half. He kicked a 26-yard field goal in the first quarter to tie Morten Andersen with 2,544 points and then added a 25-yarder late in the second to set the record .

Vinatieri scored three more points, giving him 2,550 for his career.

Oakland (1-6) doesn’t have time to dwell on this latest loss, as they will play their Bay Area rival the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium on Thursday Night Football at 5:20 p.m. on FOX, NFL Network and Amazon. San Francisco lost a tough game to the Arizona Cardinals, 18-15, on Sunday at State Farm Stadium in Glendale dropping the 49ers to 1-7 on the season.

The Colts (3-5) enter their Bye Week on a high note after their victory.

Raiders return home to host Colts in Week 8 following Bye Week

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Photo credit: @Raiders

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — Returning from their Bye Week, the Raiders return to action in Week 8 as they will welcome the visiting Indianapolis Colts to the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on Sunday. Kickoff for the game is at 1:05 p.m. PT. It will be the first true home game for the Silver and Black since their Week 4 win over the Cleveland Browns 45-42 in overtime on Sept. 30.

The Raiders (1-5) are looking for back-to-back wins over the Colts after defeating Indianapolis 33-25 in Oakland on Christmas Eve in 2016. That was also the game where quarterback Derek Carr broke his fibula and was lost for the rest of the season in which Oakland, who were 12-3 at the time and heading into the playoffs for the first time since their Super Bowl season of 2002, prior to Carr’s injury.

Oakland (1-5) entered their Bye Week after losing to the Seattle Seahawks 27-3 in London, England in Week 6. Carr completed 23-of-31 passes for just 142 yards, but was sacked six times in the game. Oakland’s offense managed just 185 yards total and was just 4-of-12 on third downs.

Defensively, rookie defense end Arden Key made his first start of his career and recorded his first sack, but Oakland’s defense was gashed for 369 yards of total offense by Seattle.

Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson passed for 222 yards and three touchdowns (one interception by Raiders cornerback Daryl Worley, who was making his first start of the season for Oakland).

But the week off for Oakland would be an eventful one, as the team unexpectedly traded wide receiver Amari Cooper to the Dallas Cowboys on Monday. News of the trade was first reported by ESPN’s Josina Anderson. Dallas is sending Oakland a first-round pick in 2019 for the wideout, who has just 22 catches for 280 yards and one touchdown this season in six games.

The former first-round pick by Oakland in 2015 was in the NFL’s concussion protocol after taking a helmet-to-helmet hit against the Seahawks. In his first two seasons in the NFL out of Alabama, Cooper had back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons and was named to the Pro Bowl after each season.

With the team already dealing away star defensive end Khalil Mack to Chicago a week before the season for a 2019 first-round pick, and including their own (which could be in the top-five if the season continues to spiral downward), Oakland has three first-round picks in 2019.

You add the fact the team placed running back Marshawn Lynch on injured reserve with a groin injury, the Raiders will feature Doug Martin and Jalen Richard in the backfield the rest of the way. Richard’s career-high 31 receptions rank sixth among all running backs in 2018.

Indianapolis (2-5) drubbed the Buffalo Bills 37-5 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Week 7.

Quarterback Andrew Luck completed 17-of-23 passes for 156 yards and four touchdowns. Luck has been hot in his last four games, throwing 15 touchdowns over that stretch. The Colts dominated the time of possession, controlling the game for 33:19 to Buffalo’s 26:41 and was nearly unstoppable on third downs, converting 7-of-13 chances (53 percent).

Second-year Marlon Mack rumbled over Buffalo’s defense, rushing the ball 19 times for 126 of the Colts’ 220 yards, the most rushing yards in a game for Indianapolis since 2007 per the Elias Sports Bureau.

Rookie linebacker Darrius Leonard was all over the field against the Bills, racking up 17 combined tackles (12 solo, 5 assisted). In six games this season for the Colts, the second-round pick in 2018 has recorded double-digit tackles in four of them including a career-high 19 combined tackles (15 solo, 4 assisted) in a 21-9 win over Washington back in Week 2.

Indianapolis’ defense sacked Bills quarterback Derek Anderson twice and intercepted him three times. The Colts limited Buffalo on third downs (2-of-9 for 22 percent).

Following Sunday’s game, the Raiders will travel to Santa Clara to take on their Bay Area rival, the San Francisco 49ers for Thursday Night Football, while the Colts will head home to host the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday in an AFC South battle.

Report: Raiders trade WR Amari Cooper to the Cowboys for 1st-round pick

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Photo credit: @NFL

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

ALAMEDA, Calif. — Jon Gruden and the Raiders are showing another young talent the door out of Oakland.

The Silver and Black have agreed to ship wide receiver Amari Cooper to the Dallas Cowboys, a source told ESPN’s Josina Anderson on Monday. The Raiders will receive a first-round draft pick in exchange, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

The Raiders now own three first-round picks in 2019. In addition to owning their first-round pick, Oakland also owns Chicago’s first-round pick next season after trading star defensive end Khalil Mack to the Bears a week before the start of the season.

Mack has been on a tear in the Windy City, recording 20 tackles (16 solo and 4 assisted), five sacks, four forced fumbles (1 recovery) and one interception this season. As a team, the Raiders have seven sacks combined, three by linebacker Bruce Irvin.

Cooper is off to a slow start in 2018, catching just 22 passes for 280 yards and one touchdown through the team’s first six games this season. Last season, Cooper had a down year, registering just 48 receptions for 680 yards and seven touchdowns in 14 games played.

In his first two seasons in the league after being drafted fourth overall by Oakland in 2015, Cooper was a Pro Bowler and amassed 1,000 yards in each season.

Cooper is currently in the NFL’s concussion protocol after being diagnosed with a concussion in Oakland’s 27-3 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in London on Oct. 14.

The Raiders (1-5) are coming off a bye week and will host the Indianapolis Colts on Oct. 28 at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.

Indianapolis (2-5) defeated the Buffalo Bills 37-5 on Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Raiders’ Marshawn Lynch to miss action with a groin injury

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Photo credit: sportingnews.com

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
SRS Contributor

OAKLAND — Raiders’ starting running back Marshawn Lynch will miss some playing time due to a groin injury, per ESPN citing a source with knowledge of Lynch’s injury.

Lynch is expected to miss a month with the injury, but the team has been discussing placing the running back on injured reserve, per the source.

News of Lynch’s injury and expected time missed was first reported by NFL Network.

Lynch has rushed for a team-high 376 yards on 90 carries (4.2 yards per carry) and three touchdowns this season. He also has amassed 15 receptions for 84 yards

The Raiders have veteran running back Doug Martin and holdover Jalen Richard who will be counted on to pickup the slack in the ground game for Oakland in Lynch’s absence.

Martin is second on the Raiders with 99 yards on 27 carries (3.7 yards per carry), and Richard has rushed for just 32 yards on 11 carries (2.9 yards per carry) through the team’s first six games this season.

Richard is better suited to help in the passing game, where he’s second behind tight end Jared Cook (32 catches) for the team lead with 31 catches for 253 yards this season.

The Raiders (1-5) are on a bye week before hosting the visiting Indianapolis Colts (1-5) in Week 8 at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on Oct. 28 at 1:05 p.m. PT.