If Osweiler wants to keep his starting quarterback job, he needs to play better than he did against the Chargers and Raiders in back-to-back weeks. Some members of Denver’s defense were vocal about that, noting the offense’s poor showing.
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“Still confident and great in the huddle”, Broncos tight end Owen Daniels said of Osweiler.
King is the Raiders’ reluctant star, a player who feels infinitely more comfortable decked out in full camouflage than he does standing in front of a throng of reporters and television cameras. Under Manning, the Broncos were 7-2 on the season; under Osweiler, they are 3-1.
Offensively, it was the tale of two halves for the Raiders, as Oakland went into the locker room trailing 12-0, and appeared dead in the water heading into the break. There are times when you are down right mad about a loss because something happened like a bad play call, bad officiating, or a bogus hail mary that sails over Rahim Moore’s head to end your Super Bowl aspirations. “It culminated in a loss”.
Still, there was plenty of blame to go around, starting with Denver’s leaky line, which only produced 34 yards on the ground and allowed Mack to blow through for five sacks in the second half. And the Denver defense is the very best in the league.
That was a statement drive and it rewarded the defense for not giving up a touchdown in the first half. Thomas also lost a fumble.
They’ve gone seven quarters without an offensive touchdown, but Osweiler isn’t the only reason: Demaryius Thomas and Vernon Davis had crucial drops of on-target passes in the fourth quarter Sunday that squashed their comeback bid.
-Sanders muffed a punt at his own 11 without being hit.
“I think it’s created early in the week in how you approach the game and how you prepare yourself”, Del Rio said.
Casual NFL fans often forget long snappers exist, let alone celebrate them in crucial moments in the game.
Some of these concerns can be counteracted with a better run game, one that was nonexistent against Oakland but had been better against the opponents in Osweiler’s first three starts.
Solid veteran free agent pick ups like Malcolm Smith, Dan Williams, David Amerson, and Donald Penn – and the steady veteran stalwart and seemingly immortal Charles Woodson are helping to shape this team and turn it from the team who’d posted losing records for more than a decade into a team that will know how to win – and come to expect it.
With both snappers out and his team leading by three points, Del Rio opted to go for a 2-point conversion that failed. Carr threw incomplete, and instead of needing a touchdown, the Broncos only needed a field goal to tie.
After the Raiders had been dominated in terms of yardage in the first half but were within striking distance on the scoreboard, players said Del Rio’s demeanor was calm and confident.
“You make a snap judgment, and that was our choice”, Del Rio explained.
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Raiders coach Jack Del Rio said at his weekly press conference Monday that the initial reports were not encouraging.
