Oakland Lays Another Goose Egg

“This is a tale of too many penalties,”--Coach Tom Cable

By Barbara Mason 11/09/2008
Raiderdrive.com/Bay Area Sports Drive

It started with a Johnnie Lee Higgins fumble on the opening kickoff that resulted in the first Carolina score and went downhill from there.  The Panther’s quarterback Jake Delhomme went right to work and found Muhsin Muhammad in the end zone for the 7-0 early lead, cashing in on the first Raider miscue of the game.  It was the start of another Sunday afternoon disaster.

Quarterback Andrew Walters was at the helm for this game in place of  JaMarcus Russell.  While his numbers were better than Russell’s were last week, he was sacked, fumbled three times, and he threw two interceptions.  Oakland was on the Carolina 16 when he threw the first interception, just one of many missed opportunities that would play out in this game.  Just before the half, the Panthers found pay dirt for the second time in the game when Williams scampered 69 yards for a 14-0 lead.  Although the Raiders did get a number of decent drives going every one of them amounted to nothing more than goose eggs.

The second half started with promise as the Raiders had their third interception of the game at the Panther 25-yard line.  They had to settle for the field goal and they were looking at a 14-3 deficit. The Raiders intercepted the ball twice in the 3^rd quarter accruing 4 interceptions in this game.  Again, they had to settle for the field goal and a 14-6 score.

Despite a very good showing by the Oakland defense, the Raiders needed help from their offense and it just never came.  In the closing minutes of the game, the Panthers added another field goal for the final of 17-6.  Quarterback Andrew Walters finished the game with 14 of 32 attempts and 143 yards with two interceptions.  Running back Justin Fargas had 89 yards on 22 carries.

Once again as is always the case, #9 Shane Lechler was one of the few bright spots in this game with not only his kicks but also preventing a Carolina score in the fourth quarter when none of his teammates could get the job done.  There were also the record-breaking kicks by Sebastian Janikowski shattering George Blanda’s 863 kicks.  Janikowski now has 865 kicks to his credit.

The puzzling part of this whole dilemma is the fact that the Raiders had 17 first downs to the Panthers 10, they had 259 total net yards to the Panthers 219, and they had four interceptions.  On top of this the time of possession for Oakland was 37:02 to Carolina’s 22:58 yet they still lost the game. 

“This is a tale of too many penalties, particularly on offense,” said head coach Tom Cable after the game.  “On first and second down we moved the ball very well, and then penalties put it in third and long.  We’re just not efficient enough to do that yet.  I thought coverage on special teams was not very good.  We did run the ball with some effectiveness and at times threw the ball with some effectiveness,” he said.  “I am very proud of the defense.  They only gave up the one big play on the long run, but other than that I thought they played very well.”

It doesn’t matter how the team has played, there are several players who are always willing to face the press and Nnamdi Asomugha is one of them.  Even though the outcome of the game was disappointing he was happy with the play of the defense.  “I thought we were great.  I thought we were aggressive.  We had guys running around and playing fast, we had tight coverage.  We did well except for that one play,” said Asomugha.

Sebastian Janikowski (left) made two of three possible field goals.  He came in cold on the last kick with seconds left in the game and missed the 58-yard attempt.  “All that matters is the win.  I’m happy for the record, I’m happy for the fans but I would trade it in for the win,” he said.  He kept that record-breaking ball and it will grace his office.

The Raiders will now travel to Miami for one of two road games in a row.  If the offense can make the transition from the red zone into the end zone, and the defense keeps playing the way they are, they could have some measure of success.  Right now you can be sure that all eyes will be watching the Oakland Raider offense.

Look for Raiders vs. Panthers Photo Gallery and Raiderettes on Field this Monday here at Raiderdrive.com!!!