Sean Kirkwood asks:
"What is a good reason to watch this game as a fan?"
For me personally, I'm excited to see the sequel to Davante Adams vs. Patrick Surtain II.
Most teams this season have thrown various double teams and zones at the Raiders offense to try and combat the All-Pro receiver. Not the Denver Broncos in Week 4, though. They stuck their 2021 first-round pick on an island with Adams, confident in Surtain's play.
Both players had their wins and losses against each other throughout the day. Adams finished the game with 101 receiving yards and nine catches, while Surtain had two pass breakups on Adams and finished the game with an 82 coverage grade from Pro Football Focus. Surtain's 87.2 overall grade is the highest of all cornerbacks this season (min. 100 snaps).
"He's a good player," Adams said of Surtain following the Week 4 game. "He's a good player, that was my first time going up against him. I got a lot of respect for what he can do."
Trevor Kroeker asks:
"What's going on with Chandler Jones?"
Chandler Jones' season so far has been hard to evaluate simply on paper.
The former All-Pro edge rusher has been effective despite his sack total. He's done a good job of setting the edge and preventing long runs. He's also been responsible for containing mobile quarterbacks. So to say he's having a bad season is slightly irresponsible.
However, it's hard to imagine that the Raiders thought Jones would have 0.5 sacks through nine games when they signed him this offseason. He's historically been one of the best in the game at getting after the quarterback – with 107.5 sacks before becoming a Raider. Head Coach Josh McDaniels stated Wednesday that with a better all-around pass rush from the front seven, Jones will continue to have more chances to affect the quarterback.
"[S]ometimes they come in bunches, and sometimes there's streaks where they don't happen. I'd say, right now, we're in one of those streaks for whatever reason," McDaniels said regarding sacks. "There's been opportunities, it's not like he hasn't been around them. It's not like we haven't had chances. ... Chandler is a pro and he's been through it before and he's going to continue to work hard, and we're going to continue to try to help put him in positions to be successful. But there's a lot of people that need to do some things up there that may affect that ultimately at the end of the day."
John Hayes Sr. asks:
"How many points will Raiders give up?"
It's interesting to take into account the Broncos woes on offense this season.
The Broncos have scored the least amount of points in the league this season, and gained the eighth fewest total yards this season. The Raiders defense has had its struggles this season, however that didn't stop the team from picking up the win against Denver in their last encounter. The win was aided by a fumble recovery returned for a touchdown by cornerback Amik Robertson.
The Broncos offense is still formidable with Russell Wilson and Courtland Sutton leading the way. However, the 23 points the Raiders surrendered to the Broncos in October is the second-least they've allowed this season. If the Raiders can will the turnover battle once again, the results could be favorable.
