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Oakland Defense Celebrates a Banner Day “I like the way we responded in the second half.”--Head Coach Tom Cable
Coming off an obliteration of the Denver Broncos last Sunday, the Oakland Raiders took on the Seattle Seahawks on Halloween. Back at home, the team had hopes of stringing two wins in a row. It was a picture perfect day for football with temperatures running in the mid-sixties at game time.
After a few go no-where possessions, the Oakland offense put their hands to the grindstone and drove to within field goal range. Sebastian Janikowski kicked a 31 yard field goal for the early 3-0 lead. The Raiders defense was all over Seattle hurrying and sacking quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. They had all but shut down the Seahawk offense. The quarter was all Oakland defense with the Raider offense never really getting to much going. It came to an end with Oakland clinging to the 3-0 lead. The second quarter saw the Raiders marching down into Seattle territory midway through the quarter. Going for a fourth and one on the Seattle 30, Jason Campbell squeezed a pass between two Seattle defenders finding Marcel Reese for the touchdown and the 10-0 lead. It was a gutsy call that paid off big time for the Raiders. With less than two minutes left in the second quarter Seattle was successfully moving the ball into Raider territory. The Seahawks stalled on the Raider 33 yard line and were forced to attempt the field goal. The kick failed and Oakland took the 10-0 lead into the locker room at the half. The third quarter got underway with the Seattle offense hoping to get something going. It didn’t happen for the Seahawks and they were forced to punt. Seattle was able to pin the Raiders deep in their own territory. Oakland dug their way out of that hole when Darren McFadden broke loose for a 49 yard romp followed by a razzle dazzle play that gave Oakland a first down on the Seattle 20. Unable to find the end zone, the Raiders again settled for a 36 yard field goal and the 13-0 lead. By games’ end, the Oakland Raiders would leave a lot of points on the field. Mid-way through the third quarter Seattle again attempted a short 29 yard field goal. The kick missed and the Seahawks continued to struggle. The Raiders traded missed field goals with Seattle when in the very next series Sebastian Janikowski missed a 43 yard attempt. As the third quarter neared completion another long run, this time by Michael Bush, took the Raiders back to the Seattle 30. Several plays later Oakland was inside the Seattle five. The Raiders would begin the fourth quarter on the Seattle four yard line. Unable to find the end zone Oakland settled for yet another field goal, a 22 yard kick and the 16-0 lead. Seattle’s next series ended up in an interception by Oakland’s Tyvon Branch off a tipped pass returning the ball for 15 yards. The turnover was challenged by Seattle and determined to be an interception. The very next play, a 69 yard pass from Jason Campbell to Darrius Heyward-Bey resulted in a second Raider touchdown and a commanding 23-0 lead. Despite a series of sacks by the Oakland defense the Seahawks were able to fight their way back into field goal range. The earlier misses by Seattle had to have weighed heavily but they were able to finally put one through the uprights for the three points, trailing 23-3. The onside kick by Seattle with less than ten minutes left in the game was covered by Oakland. That possession was turned into three more points for the Raiders off a 49 yard field goal. Leading by the score of 26-3, it looked like Oakland would finally string together two wins in a row. The Raiders final drive was again a long run deep into Seahawk territory as a fatigued Seattle defense looked helpless. They had spent far too much time on the field. Oakland busted into the end zone for yet another Raider touchdown in this drive and a 33-3 lead which would turn out to be the final. Despite winning today, the Oakland Raiders left far too many points out on the field. While they got away with it today, it may be much different next time. Special teams allowed a lot of return yardage, a showing that was a bit spotted. The defense was on task today; they were brilliant. The Oakland running game came unleashed as Darren McFadden led the way with 111 yards. Michael Bush had 51 yards and a touchdown. Quarterback Jason Campbell was shaky at times but did finish the day with 310 yards and 2 touchdowns. Receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey had 105 yards receiving and a touchdown while Marcel Reese had 90 and a touchdown. It was an incredible day of football for the players and fans alike. The one thing that put a dampener on the game was the loss of star safety Nnamdi Asomugha due to an ankle strain, the extent of it not known at this time. “In terms of the game, I thought we were very sloppy offensively in the first half. We never got in sync, we never got in rhythm but it was a nice job adjusting at half time,” said Head Coach Tom Cable after the game. “It was a tremendous win for our football team, very dominant defensively. I liked the way we responded in the second half,” he said. Next Sunday, the Oakland Raiders will take on division rivals the Kansas City Chiefs. This promises to be a closely contested game as Oakland is now within reach of first place in their division. Kansas City who sits atop the division at 5-2 has already had their bye week and Oakland has not. A win next week will put them awfully close. Kickoff is at 1:15.
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The
Raiders were riding high in the confidence department and their defense
looked to be starting out where they had left off in Denver. They made
the Seattle offense miserable shutting them down from the get go. Before
the day was done, the defense would register 7 sacks. 