RAIDERS!!!!!!!!!!!! For the first half of Sundays 21-18 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, the most dominant players on the field were Oakland Raiders quarterback Terrelle Pryor and running back Darren McFadden. Pittsburghs defense bit hard on a read-option fake to McFadden, allowing Pryor to race 93 yards for a touchdown on the first play from scrimmage -- good for the longest run by a quarterback in NFL history. McFadden went on to add two scores of his own as the Raiders tallied their second-highest first-half rushing total of the past 20 years. The Steelers finally awoke from their slumber in the second half, allowing just one first down over the Raiders final nine series. As the Oakland offense went in the tank, the defense picked up the slack behind defensive end Lamarr Houston and linebacker Sio Moore. A confused Ben Roethlisberger was sacked five times while rookie running back LeVeon Bell was held to just 1.8 yards per carry. The Steel Curtain has the name, but the Raiders have the game on defense this year. Heres what else we learned in Sundays game: 1. Like Michael Vick a decade ago, Terrelle Pryor is getting by on sheer athleticism as a sandlot player. Pryor is especially tough to defend on third downs, when man coverage leaves a defense susceptible to scrambling. Another similarity to Vick is that Pryors freelancing opens up running lanes for McFadden, who ran with more explosiveness in the first half than he did at any point in the past two years. 2. Houston has played at a Pro Bowl level versus the pass and the run this season. Moore racked up two sacks and two quarterback hits Sunday after recording one sack and three hurries versus the Chiefs last week. Hes quickly becoming one of the most impressive defensive rookies in the league.
Posted on: Mon, 28 Oct 2013 18:32:13 +0000
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