On one hand, the Raiders have an improving defense and a promising prospect at quarterback. On the other, Oakland’s running game has been suspect all season and the offensive line has been in shambles due to injuries across the board.
Yet despite playing in a division where the NFL’s only two remaining undefeated teams are, the Raiders are still in good shape to end their run of 10 consecutive seasons without a winning record. Considering their remaining schedule, it’s also conceivable, albeit unlikely, that they could still make a push for the postseason.
Before they can think that far ahead, however, the Raiders must improve in several key areas over the next few months.
Here’s a list of five ways Oakland can do just that:
Air it out
Quarterback Terrelle Pryor struggled to throw the ball deep earlier in the season but found his touch for the long ball against San Diego when he tossed a 44-yard touchdown to Rod Streater on the Raiders’ first play from scrimmage.
It’s imperative the offense keep testing opposing defenses that way.
Before Pryor’s play to Streater, teams stacked the box to take away Oakland’s running game. They were not worried about getting beat deep because a) Pryor hadn’t proven he was capable of doing it successfully at the NFL level; and b) the Raiders had only taken a handful of shots down the field through the first month of the season.
Now that he’s had time to develop better timing with his receivers, Pryor needs to start throwing deep more often.
That would force teams to play the pass more honestly, which in theory should then open up room for the running game to take off.
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Article Source: Bleacher Report - Oakland Raiders
