Antonio Pierce admits Raiders have a “lot of things to correct” despite upsetting Ravens in Baltimore
Las Vegas Raiders HC Antonio Pierce believes there's room for improvement amid the Week 2 upset over the Baltimore Ravens.
Follow Us
Antonio Pierce believes that there's some corrections needed in the Raiders team (Images via AP)
The Las Vegas Raiders came back from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter to defeat the Baltimore Ravens at the M&T Bank Stadium. The Ravens are now 0-2 in the regular season for the first time since 2015.
If anything, Week 2 was a celebration of football for NFL fans. The Atlanta Falcons defeating the Philadelphia Eagles or New Orleans Saints emerging as serious contenders are just two of the biggest storylines in football currently. The Silver and Black shocking the Ravens added more merry into the mix as the Ravens faced deep waters ahead.
In the fourth quarter, the Ravens went 23, leaving the Raiders a whopping 10 points behind. The Raiders then put thirteen straight points on the table to seal the game. With two minutes remaining, QB Gardner Minshew II passed the ball to Davante Adams for a 1-yard TD, effectively tying the game. Barely a minute later, Daniel Carlson scored his third field goal of the night to come out on top.
The win might have put some smiles on the Las Vegas fans as they are 1-1 after week one defeat to the Los Angeles Chargers. However, HC Antonio Pierce understood that there were changes that need to be made. The Raiders can’t always rely on late rallies to save them. Moving forward, they will need to take the game by its horns and take early advantage of the plays.
We’ve got a lot of things that we need to correct. It was a win yesterday, but there were a lot of things in that first quarter that were ugly, in that first half that were ugly and in that third quarter that were ugly.HC Antonio Pierce said to the reporters
The coach emphasized that the fourth-quarter energy is what he expects in all four quarters. Nevertheless, The Raiders have a lot of positives to take back. Minshew II is the only quarterback to throw 250+ yards in both weeks. 21-year-old jacked-up rookie Brock Bowers has also taken it to the team and playing extremely well.
The Raiders need to fix their run game before Week 3 to continue the run
The Raiders had a terrible start, leading the defense headed by Maxx Crosby to power the game until the offense got supercharged in the second half. Crosby also threw an interception which was crucial for the underdogs’ eventual result. However, like Antonio Pierce, there are some areas where they need to work with the key being the run game.
The Raiders are ranked last in rushing yards with an average of 49.0. The Los Angeles Rams who are 31st in the list have an average of 68.0 for a comparison. Raiders rushed only 22 times for 71 yards, against the Chargers and only 17 times for 27 yards, averaging 1.6 yards per carry against the Ravens.
Zamir White retains the most blame as the running back but the issue is not only his. The work needs to start up front and the game against the Carolina Panthers would be ideal. The Raiders can be assured of a win against the Panthers, unless some miracle happens, giving them a chance to build up some confidence before meeting Cleveland Browns in Week 4.
Stay Updated!
Mohammed Bazim
(452 Articles Published)