DENVER – The Raiders were simply awful in the first half of Sunday’s game against their rival Broncos. The Raiders were simply awful in the first half. They had minus-12 yards in the first two quarters, becoming the third team to finish a half with negative yards since 1991.
Head coach Jack Del Rio must’ve said something right at halftime, because his Raiders came out of hibernation in the second.
They scored to start the third quarter, controlled Denver on defense and got back in the game. They took a lead and held it with stout defense led by Khalil Mack, beating the Broncos 15-12 at Sports Authority Field.
The Raiders showed signs of life on the first drive of the second half, when they got out of negative yardage and on to the scoreboard with a touchdown catch by Seth Roberts, who made a sliding grab for the team’s first score.
The Raiders cut the Broncos lead to 12-9 with a safety late in the third quarter. Marquette King pinned Denver back at its own 2-yard line, and Khalil Mack strip-sacked quarterback Brock Oswieler in the end zone. The Broncos recovered, but it counted as a safety.
The Raiders took a 15-12 lead on a 16-yard touchdown catch by tight end Mychal Rivera. Long snapper Jon Condo injured his shoulder recovering a muffed punt that set up the score, and was unavailable for the extra point. The Raiders chose to go for two in that scenario – tight end Lee Smith is the backup long snapper – and didn’t convert. That kept the game tight down the stretch considering Denver only needed a field goal to tie it.
The score remained static as Khalil Mack took over the game on defense. He finished with five sacks and a forced fumble, with several big plays in key moments. He has 14 sacks on the season.
Sebastian Janikowski missed a 43-yard field goal wide left, which kept the game extremely close.
The team’s slim playoff chances took a major hit before kickoff, with the Chiefs, Steelers and Jets winning in morning games. They are two games behind all three teams after the victory.
It’s been said once but bears repeating how bad the Raiders offense was in the first half.
They had just one first down in the first half, and it came by penalty. Carr was 2-for-8 for seven yards and Latavius Murray had four yards on three carries. Some credit goes to the top-ranked Denver defense, but execution was extremely poor on the Raiders end.
The Broncos, by contrast, had 224 yards of offense and 17 first downs, with just 12 points to show for it. The Raiders defense held tough in the red zone, keeping Denver out of the end zone in three trips. That includes a goal-to-go situation at the end of the first half.
Injury update: Right tackle Austin Howard limped off the field early in the third quarter with a knee injury. He did not return to the game.
That caused a shuffle on the offensive line, with right guard J’Marcus Webb moving to right tackle and Tony Bergstrom stepping in at right guard for a few plays. The Raiders primarily used Khalif Barnes at right tackle.
Long snapper Jon Condo suffered a shoulder injury, which prompted the Raiders to go for two points following the Rivera touchdown catch. He returned later in that quarter.
Hudson starts: Raiders center Rodney Hudson was finally healthy enough to start after missing three of the past four games with a sprained right ankle.
Khalil Mack and Amari Cooper were probable on the injury report and played.
Nate Allen was out with a knee injury, a void filled by TJ Carrie and Taylor Mays.
Other Raiders inactives: WR Rod Streater, TE Gabe Holmes, RB Roy Helu, OL Jon Feliciano, DL Shleby Harris and OL Matt McCants.
What's next: The Raiders start a two-game home stand next week by hosting the Green Bay Packers, the season’s last clash with the NFC North. Former Raider James Jones and Cal alum Aaron Rodgers return to the East Bay to play the Raiders. Green Bay has scuffled some of late, but they still pose a major threat with big-time playmakers on offense.
