Although the Oakland Raiders are still trying to get their offensive line to full health, this group has done a stellar job of keeping quarterback Derek Carr on his feet in recent weeks.
Carr’s protection has been a point of emphasis since head coach Jon Gruden‘s arrival and it appears their efforts have finally come to fruition. The Raiders have now managed to keep Carr sack-free in three consecutive games.
Perhaps even more impressive is that they did it during their worst travel schedule of the 2019 NFL season. It is safe to say that Carr has taken notice.
He admits he is feeling much fresher in the second half of the season thanks to their protection, via Scott Bair of NBC Sports:
“This year I feel fresh as can be with all of the games that we have played already,” Carr said. “That’s a credit to our offensive line. We joke around all the time, I always go around and check on them all the time and they’re sore, all these kinds of things, (and they say) like, ‘how do you feel?’ ‘I feel great actually, thank you for asking.’ (laughter) That’s all that matters to them, so it’s good.”
Carr elaborated on some of the benefits that come with having such solid protection from the guys upfront:
“You have to play quarterback a different way when there’s not as much time. You can’t go to the third and fourth progression,” Carr said Wednesday. “You can’t drop back against the Bears, try to look off a flat defender and throw a 20-yard sail route. You can’t do that kind of stuff. You have to get the ball out, you have to move faster.
“I was talking to Tony Romo when he did our game (versus Green Bay in Week 7), and that was something that we both laughed and joked about – you can be a completely different player when you have that kind of time, to be honest with you and you can throw different routes, have different schemes, have different game plans. You can do a lot of different stuff. We’re going to go as that offensive line goes, they are the best players on our football team by far. We’re going to go as they go.”
It is undoubtedly encouraging to see that Carr seems to be feeling as comfortable as ever in the pocket. His trust in the offensive line will only serve to pay huge dividends for him down the stretch.
The Raiders only had their full starting offensive line for 10 plays against the Houston Texans before center Rodney Hudson suffered an ankle injury. Fortunately, Gruden is optimistic that this group will be restored in time for Week 9 against the Detroit Lions.
