Head Coach Jack Del Rio
The Oakland Raiders are back to .500 for the first time since Week 4, and after defeating the New York Giants Sunday at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, the team owns a home record of 4-3. The Silver and Black were forced to play without two of their top playmakers in wide receivers Derek Carr and Amari Cooper, but plenty of players stepped up in their stead. Head Coach Jack Del Rio seemed pleased with the team's performance in Week 13, and met with the media postgame to discuss the game.
Here are the quick hits from his press conference:
Del Rio praised a trio of playmakers from the team's offense.
"Cordarrelle really played a heck of a game. He was impactful on special teams. He was impactful as a receiver, as a blocker, as a ball carrier. He played really well for us today. Johnny Holton came up. That toe tap there on that touchdown drive when we went to a 10-point lead there. Just following that Marshawn [Lynch], that great play on third down where he kind of went 'Beast Mode' there. Went through a couple of defenders. It was really good stuff."
He's proud the defense has been able to limit opposing offenses to under 300 total yards the past two weeks.
"Two weeks in a row that we played very well. Held our opponent under 300 yards and really kept us in the game early when we were not firing on all cylinders offensively. We hit our stride in the second half. Made some tremendous drives to put the game away."
Del Rio's been pleased with the effort he's seen from running back Marshawn Lynch recently.
"When he came back from the suspension, I've seen a little more pep in the step. A little more…I can't speak for him, I just know what I see. It's been good. I welcome it, and we're taking full advantage of it."
**He was pumped to see the defense force a pair of takeaways early on, especially the one from defensive end Khalil Mack.
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"Huge, especially the one at the end of the half there where Khalil [Mack] takes the ball from their quarterback in the red zone. They're knocking on the door right there. They're certain to get points or have a high likelihood of getting some kind of points. To snuff it out right like that, take the ball off him, that was huge."
Even though the team is tied for first in the AFC West, Del Rio wants the team to stay focused on one game at a time.
"Just one at a time. Just like we've been doing. We've been purposeful in our work. We understand the scenario of where we are and what we need to get done. And what we need to get done is one week at a time. Keep improving as a football team. Need to stay together no matter what the noise is outside. Sometimes the noise gets loud. Sometimes it gets loud in another direction. For us not to focus anything but the work, the preparation, the recovery and then going out and competing our tails off."
