The Oakland Raiders are back on the road today, taking on the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium in Nashville.
The Silver and Black handled business and beat the Titans 17-10.
Pregame
Tackles Austin Howard and McCants were ruled out of today's bout with the Titans by Head Coach Jack Del Rio following Friday's practice, and the other four inactive players for the Week 3 game were quarterback Connor Cook, cornerback Dexter McDonald, cornerback Antonio Hamilton, and tight end Mychal Rivera.
Center Rodney Hudson, defensive end Khalil Mack, safety Reggie Nelson, quarterback Derek Carr, and safety Nate Allen were Sunday's captains, and after winning the coin toss, the Raiders elected to defer to the second half.
First Quarter
After a week's worth of speculation, rookie safety Karl Joseph did indeed earn his first NFL start, appearing in the base defense for the Silver and Black during its first series of the ballgame.
The Titans were able to drive into Raiders territory, but the offense was stopped short on 3rd and 14, which forced Tennessee to attempt a field goal.
Kicker Ryan Succop connected from 34 yards out to give the Titans an early 3-0 lead with 9:50 left in the first quarter.
However, Derek Carr and the Raiders offense answered in short order, quickly putting together a five-play, sixty-yard drive in 1:31 that was punctuated by a 22-yard touchdown run by Latavius Murray on his first run of the day.
There would be no more scoring in the first frame, and at the end of the first quarter, the Silver and Black led the Titans 7-3.
Second Quarter
With 9:20 left in the second quarter, Marcus Mariota took off and ran on a 3rd and 12. During the run, Bruce Irvin got to the Titans quarterback, and forced a fumble that was recovered by Reggie Nelson.
The Raiders were able to take advantage of the gift, as Sebastian Janikowski connected from 51 yards out to improve the Raiders lead to 10-3 with 8:13 left in the half.
Not only did the kick further the Raiders lead, it was also Janikowski's 53rd field goal of 50-or-more yards, which set an NFL record.
The Raiders weren't done though, as Carr orchestrated an eight-play, 91-yard drive that was finished off by an impressive 19-yard touchdown pass to Seth Roberts.
Janikowski connected on the PAT to give the Raiders a 17-3 lead with 0:33 left in the first half.
Reggie Nelson ended the half with an interception of Mariota, so at the end of the second quarter, the Raiders led 17-3.
Third Quarter
While it didn't result in points, the first drive of the third quarter did provide some impressive fireworks, as Carr successfully eluded a trio of pass rushers, before heaving a ball deep downfield that was caught by Crabtree for a gain of 29.
INJURY UPDATE: Tackle Menelik Watson is out with a lower right leg injury.
However, the Titans were able to get some points out of their first drive of the second half, as DeMarco Murray took a handoff from Mariota, and galloped five yards in the for the score.
The PAT was converted, and with 5:51 left in the third quarter, the Titans pulled closer, making the score 17-10.
The teams traded punts for the remainder of the third quarter, and heading into the final frame, the Raiders led 17-10.
Fourth Quarter
On the first drive of the fourth quarter, Sean Smith secured his first interception as a Raider, picking off a pass from Mariota intended for Rishard Matthews.
However, the Raiders could not take advantage, as Carr was then intercepted by linebacker Avery Williamson as the Silver and Black marched into Titans territory.
After the back-to-back interceptions, the two teams traded punts for the rest of the fourth quarter, but with less than two minutes left in the game, the Titans marched down into the red zone in a bid to tie the game.
However, the Raiders defense was able to force an incomplete pass on 4th and 4 which allowed them to escape Music City with a 17-10 win under their belt.
