Saints Gameday Thread
Strong start to the season! The Saints are also a bit of an unexpected surprise, but one that we can bring back down to earth. Let's make it 3-0! Go RAAAIIIDERRRS!
posted by Raider Take at 12:06 PM
Sunday, September 27, 2026
DEFENDING THE NATION!
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12 Comments:
My goodness, how refreshing, the Raiders are consistently taking care of business! Wow, what a great start to the season.
Ci,
Hey Take! Nice blog! Im :Corporate Insider'..., What I do is try to get the inside/ 'business side' of football. The Raiders arent as pumped and caught up in their winning streak. They want to g ER to lots of to draft p in cks and make and run in. '27 not now. So, a sudden losing streak, whiffs may not surprise me They may try trade Bowers or Maxx this year maybe Jeanty if they hit the cellar They won't sign(free agency) trade for elite stars. So then and the HH ey must want homegrown team, the he draft ann to the hey need NG, ER, OG an to DBs so t HH rull have high draft pick as n ok to lot of o to vet so maybe Ed a few so one starters. That's what we are waiting for,, what we think will be a playoff run...a team of young vets and high draft pick rookies. Maxx or Bowers may have to ho ho get picks cMaybe fanx should think about this team
4 turnovers in the 4th quarter by a Raiders defense determined to win (really 5 turnovers if you wipe away that ridiculous illegal contact call). A bit disappointed in some of the coverages during the game (how does Olave get so open all the time) but they dialed it up when it meant the most. Koonce another big play, Masses another INT, Dean is everywhere. The TEs were spectacular. Another week to relax and enjoy a win.
Bech is probably going to IR and Cody White will likely replace Bech on the roster. Honestly, that's an upgrade at WR. White has 3 TDs.
Rams really let us down last night. Super Bowl favorites are 1-2. Meanwhile, the Raiders played a gritty game yesterday and after three weeks they have as many wins as they had all last season.
Raiders defense struggled in the 2nd and 3rd Quarters, but what was different was they kept grinding. Leonard made some adjustments and packages we have nevwr seen the Raiders use, and created 2 turnovers in the 4th Quarter, put pressure on Shough,and got us MONSTER STOPS to win the game.
Chiefs are next, JUST WIN, BABY!
The Raiders have something that separates good teams from bad ones: determination. Their defense fought tooth and nail in the fourth quarter against the Saints, playing like a wounded animal that refused to go down.
IMO, a big reason they can sustain that intensity is their defensive line rotation. Maxx Crosby is the only true "star," as our friend likes to call them, but the Raiders have talent spread throughout the entire group. They rotate players in and out constantly, keeping everyone fresh. The by-committee approach is working.
Against the Saints, nine defensive linemen rotated through a predominantly four-man front, with most seeing between 30% and 40% of the defensive snaps. Five of those players were interior linemen. That's impressive depth and, in many ways, the hidden strength of this defense. Crosby is the only full-time player on the line, logging about 85% of the snaps.
Meanwhile, Stokes, Chinn, Walker, and Dean are the only defenders who rarely leave the field. No offense to the Bergs at linebacker, but they are meh.
The Raiders' defense has also developed a turnover culture, led by Dean and Chinn. Masses 3 INTs in two games may prove to be a fluke but so far he looks like a ball hawk. Crosby and Koonce (when he's fresh) are like blood hounds to the QB.
Rob Leonard knows the Chiefs, and he knows Mahomes. If the Chiefs beat the Raiders Sunday it will be because they are the better team. Yet, if the Raiders overachieving 3-0 start tells us anything, it tells us they want it more than their opponents. So right now, the one edge the Raiders hold is determination.
NY,
IMO, Dean is playing better than Crosby. Against the Saints, Crosby continued to over-pursue the play in front of him. He didn't really get going until the 4th Quarter, and his rush seemed more focus. If the Raiders are going to beat the Chiefs, Crosby is going to have to play focused the whole game, or Mahomes will take advantage of his over-pursuit.
The play Masses picked off Shough, the Raiders rushed 5 from the edge, while the DT's dropped into coverage, and I think Koonce was the one to hit Shough as he threw. Anyone else notice that? That was the coverage the Raiders had never shown before. What stood out to me on that, is it forced Shough to the middle where he wasn't real comfortable. I think the Raiders need to do this to Mahomes too. Something different to throw him off. We should do ring around the rosy before we do it too.
Make the world a better place, punch the Chiefs in the face, and JUST WIN, BABY!
Koonce bull rushed the tackle into the QB on the Masses INT. I think the entire D tightened up at the end. They made the right changes (or calls) to pressure more and get tighter coverage. Every game will be different, but making changes that work is the key.
Ci,
A #1 WR, starting NG, a.CB, OG, a DE/ edge...
They may draft a #1 WR, trade Maxx, draft a new DE/ edge, new OG...and they think they'll be a contender in '27. They need ILB, WR, CB, NG and OG. They may get 1 star FS but will try homegrown team. A young team, rookies at big positions and maybe 2 star FS but mostly, good vets and this will(may) be our playoff team? We could make few trades and get talent for a run now.
Defense that struggles but holds > Defense that struggles and finds a way to lose in the final drives = progress!
Indeed. I would say, even in their best years, Raiders never had a Buddy Ryan-lights out 46 defense. Raiders best defenses were 'bend but don't break.' I think Dean has added a "go for the ball" mentality to the Raiders D, and so far it's working. Of course, luck can also be helpful. The Saints seemed to be coughing it up all over the field when the game was on the line. To the Raiders credit, they took full advantage.
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