Tackle Donald Penn, Quarterback Derek Carr, Wide Receiver Michael Crabtree, and Outside Linebacker Bruce Irvin
The Oakland Raiders were back on the field Thursday night, as Head Coach Jack Del Rio's club took on the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field.
After winning their preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals, the Silver and Black fell Friday night 20-12 to the Packers. Now a loss in the preseason, while not ideal, isn't cause for concern, as the main purpose of the preseason is to get warmed up and sufficiently prepared for the when the regular season kicks off.
After back-to-back road games to start their preseason slate, the Raiders return home next Saturday to host the Tennessee Titans, but before our focus shifts entirely to that game, let's look back at the playtime percentages from Thursday's contest with the Packers, and see what we can learn from taking a closer look at the numbers.
Offense
The First Team Offense Gets Some Run– Quarterback Derek Carr played 26 offensive snaps (53%), playing through the end of the first half in Thursday's loss to the Packers, as was the case for a majority of the starting offense.
Carr finished the night 9 of 13 for 38 yards and one interception, and while it wasn't his best showing of the preseason, he did complete an impressive 20-yard strike to wide receiver Amari Cooper, and most importantly, he left the game healthy.
Seth Roberts Paces The Wide Receivers– Roberts played 34 offensive snaps (69%) Thursday at Lambeau Field, more than any other Raider on the offensive side of the football.
He finished the game with a team-leading four catches for 50 yards, including an impressive 33-yard reception from rookie quarterback Connor Cook.
Connor Cook Makes The Most Of His Time– Throughout Training Camp 2016 and the first two games of the preseason, rookie quarterback Connor Cook has looked more and more comfortable each time he hits the field.
Thursday night, the rookie signal caller played 17 snaps (35%), finishing the game 6 of 9 for 101 yards, and one interception.
"I think [Offensive Coordinator] Coach [Bill] Musgrave called some good plays to get me in a rhythm early," said Cook. "Guys were getting open. Guys were making plays. Guys were catching the ball. It was just unfortunate that I made a stupid decision like that, but right now its preseason, just learn from it, and don't make the same mistake twice."
Cook is a rookie, and as such, he's going to make some mistakes, but he's looking more comfortable running the Raiders offense, and it'll be interesting to see how he develops over the final two weeks of the preseason.
Defense
Starting Defense Produces Mixed Results – Defensive end Khalil Mack and the rest of the first-team defense played the entire first half in Thursday's matchup with the Packers.
Individually, Mack played 33 snaps (49%) in the loss to the Packers, finishing his night with four tackles, one tackle for loss, one sack, and two quarterback hits.
While the Packers were able to march down the field and put together an impressive, 14-play, 74-yard touchdown drive in the opening minutes of the game, Mack and the defense buckled down, and didn't allow any more points during the rest of their time on the field.
Darius Latham Earns More Playing Time– Rookie defensive tackle Darius Latham played 20 snaps in the team's preseason matchup with the Arizona Cardinals, but Thursday night at Lambeau Field he saw that number increase, as he played 37 defensive snaps (54%), more than any other Raider on either side of the football.
Most of Latham's work came in the first half, rotating in with the first-team defense, and he finished the night with two total tackles.
Neiron Ball Gets To The Quarterback –Linebacker Neiron Ball played just nine defensive snaps (13%) against the Packers, but he certainly made the most of them.
Ball finished his evening of work with three total tackles, one tackle for loss, and a sack, and that productivity is a welcome sight to see, particularly after the athletic linebacker missed a majority of his rookie campaign recovering from injury.
