Silver And Black Pride
The visible frustration from Maxx Crosby as the Denver Broncos converted third downs is common place for the Silver & Black.
When the Las Vegas Raiders energetic defensive end — who rarely leaves the field, by the way — lifts his arms up as the defense as a whole is ran ragged as it can get off the field on third downs, that has a definite trickle down effect. More and more we’re seeing other defenders with the same gestures and body language.
For Crosby though — a Raider defender that’s played in 100 percent of the defensive snaps the last three games — frustration is warranted. He doesn’t come off the field and didn’t practice much leading into the matchup with Denver. And as Las Vegas preps for a trip to face the Philadelphia Eagles, Crosby is again ailing with what head coach Pete Carroll noted as knee soreness.
“Yeah, we’re going to keep it quiet. He still has kind of a nagging concern with his knee sore, and so it’s not damaged hurt,” Carroll said during his media availability on Wednesday. “It’s just sore, and as you all know, when he plays, he bangs it as hard as he can in all aspects. And so, he wants a day here, and we’ll see what happens tomorrow.”
For as good as Crosby is, though, he can’t do it alone.
In Las Vegas’ Week 14 loss this past Sunday, the Denver Broncos engaged in old-school keep away converting seven of their 12 third-down attempts. That helped AFC West-leading Denver notch a 39:03 time of possession compared to Las Vegas’ paltry 20:57 with the ball. The week before that, the Raiders defense was electrocuted by the Los Angeles Chargers as the Bolts went 12 of 17 on third down attempts, nearly doubling up the Silver & Black with 22 first downs to Las Vegas’ 12. (For point of reference, Denver produced 27 first downs to Las Vegas’ 16).
Offensively, in the most recent two-game span, the Raiders went 3 of 9 on third downs against the Broncos and 2 of 8 against the Chargers.
One has to go back to Week 11 and 12 to find respectable defensive third-down performances for the Silver & Black.
Matched up against the high-octane Dallas Cowboys offense in Week 11, the Raiders limited Big D to just 3 of 12 on third downs. And the following week, Las Vegas held the Cleveland Browns to 4 0f 17 on third downs. So it’s been quite a Jekyll & Hyde two-game switch for Patrick Graham’s defense, which leaves Las Vegas near the bottom of the league rankings.
By The Numbers
Las Vegas Raiders Third Down Conversions
While there isn’t a quick fix to the Raiders woes on third down both defensively and offensively, there are some fundamental things the team can do...
