It has been an exhausting week for Las Vegas Raiders fans, and Sunday’s game against the Tennessee Titans has not even started yet.
Throughout the week, fans have seen the Raiders playing the blame game against each other. Head coach Pete Carroll and offensive coordinator Chip Kelly have had a back-and-forth all week long, while quarterback Geno Smith essentially pinned one of his two interceptions last week against the Indianapolis Colts on rookie wide receiver Dont’e Thornton Jr. It is clear that the 1-4 start is wreaking havoc on the locker room, and the Raiders are desperate for anything to go their way.
It is why when defensive coordinator Patrick Graham had his moment in front of the media, his response was nothing short of a breath of fresh air.
Graham pulled no punches when it came to talking about the struggles on defense.
While Graham’s defense has started out strong, they have allowed over 40 points in two of the last three games. Addressing the issues, Graham did not shy away from taking accountability and demanding the same from his players.
“Pass rushing goes hand in hand with the coverage, so I got to do a better job of creating opportunities for the guys in terms of just tying together the coverage and the rush,” Graham said during his press conference on Thursday. “And then it comes down to those guys working together and winning their individual battles when it comes up, whether it slides one way or the other. But really got to tie it all together a little better on my standpoint.”
The pass rush has only mustered eight sacks so far this season despite a healthy Maxx Crosby, and the lack of consistency of getting to the quarterback has lead to other issues cropping up all at once. From third-down defense to lack of takeaways, it is clear that Graham wants more from his group to turn the tide.
“I’m so tired — I’m trying to be mindful of my language — of talking about whatever it is we got to do. That’s how they feel. We got to do. So, I could talk about we’re doing this and that, we just got to make it happen. Got to take the ball away,” Graham said. “However it happens, that’s what we got to do, so that’s how I’m talking to them. You can see my whole mood and demeanor changed. I’m done talking, we got to do. We’re unlucky. The language I would use right now. F that. No, we got to do. It says, ‘Just Win, Baby’. We just got to do it,” Graham said.
With a week full of pointing fingers, Graham putting it upon himself to guide the defense to a return to form is a refreshing sight amidst the shifting of blame.
