On Christmas Eve, the Silver and Black made sure they sent the assembled 53,850 people at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum home with a little extra holiday cheer as they took down the division rival Denver Broncos 27-14 on Monday Night Football.
In front of a national audience, Paul Guenther's defense put together a quality, 60-minute effort, the Oakland Raiders offensive line rendered the tandem of Von Miller and Bradley Chubb ineffective, and Dwayne Harris made sure that the special teams unit got in the mix too.
Monday night was a great one if you're a fan of the Silver and Black, but let's not forget the team still has one game left on the schedule, a Sunday afternoon matchup at Arrowhead Stadium against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Even though we're now officially on the short week, and the Chiefs are going to give the Raiders their best shot in Week 17, let's enjoy Monday night for just a little bit longer, and check the playtime percentages from last night's win, and see what we can learn from the numbers.
| Player | Pos. | Offense | Defense | Special Teams |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| K. Osemele | G | 62 - 100% | 5 - 18% | |
| D. Good | G | 62 - 100% | 5 - 18% | |
| B. Parker | T | 62 - 100% | 5 - 18% | |
| K. Miller | T | 62 - 100% | 5 - 18% | |
| R. Hudson | C | 62 - 100% | ||
| D. Carr | QB | 62 - 100% | ||
| J. Nelson | WR | 49 - 79% | 1 - 4% | |
| M Ateman | WR | 47 - 76% | 1 - 4% | |
| J Cook | TE | 34 - 55% | 1 - 4% | |
| D Martin | RB | 34 - 55% | ||
| S Roberts | WR | 30 - 48% | ||
| L Smith | TE | 23 - 37% | 13 - 46% | |
| J Richard | RB | 23 - 37% | 2 - 7% | |
| K Smith | FB | 21 - 34% | 18 - 64% | |
| D Carrier | TE | 20 - 32% | 23 - 82% | |
| D Waller | TE | 14 - 23% | 7 - 25% | |
| D Harris | WR | 10 - 16% | 18 - 64% | |
| D Washington | RB | 5 - 8% | 2 - 7% | |
| K Joseph | SS | 67 - 100% | 6 - 21% | |
| M Gilchrist | FS | 67 - 100% | 6 - 21% | |
| R Melvin | CB | 67 - 100% | 6 - 21% | |
| T Whitehead | LB | 67 - 100% | 5 - 18% | |
| E Harris | SS | 59 - 88% | 22 - 79% | |
| N Morrow | LB | 59 - 88% | 13 - 46% | |
| A Key | DE | 53 - 79% | 5 - 18% | |
| P Hall | DT | 49 - 73% | 2 - 7% | |
| C McDonald | DT | 41 - 61% | 5 - 18% | |
| N Nelson | CB | 39 - 58% | 15 - 54% | |
| B Benwikere | CB | 32 - 48% | 9 - 32% | |
| F Rucker | DE | 28 - 42% | 2 - 7% | |
| J Hankins | DT | 24 - 36% | 3 - 11% | |
| K Ealy | DE | 24 - 36% | ||
| K Wilber | LB | 22 - 33% | 14 - 50% | |
| J Ellis | DT | 13 - 19% | ||
| G Wright | DT | 10 - 15% | ||
| M Lee | LB | 8 - 12% | 23 - 82% | |
| J Cabinda | LB | 8 - 12% | 4 - 14% | |
| D Leavitt | FS | 12 - 43% | ||
| D Carlson | K | 11 - 39% | ||
| J Townsend | P | 10 - 36% | ||
| T Sieg | LS | 10 - 36% | ||
| R Gafford | CB | 9 - 32% | ||
| D Sharpe | T | 5 - 18% | ||
| C Green | G | 5 - 18% |
Offense
Osemele returns – The Raiders got their All-Pro left guard back in the mix Monday night, and the group certainly enjoyed a boost from No. 70's return to action. Kelechi Osemele – along with the rest of the starting offensive line of Miller, Hudson, Good and Parker – played all 62 offensive snaps in the win over the Broncos, and really imparted their will on the Denver front as the night wore on. Not only did Von Miller not register a single tackle, but the run game got rolling in a big way as well. Welcome back, KO, we missed ya.
Martin eclipses the century mark – One of the storylines over the second half of 2018 that I don't think has gotten enough run (no pun intended) is how well Doug Martin has played. The veteran running back once again handled the bulk of the rushing duties Monday night, playing 34 offensive snaps (55%), finishing his outing with 21 carries for 107 yards, and a touchdown, as well as one reception for nine yards. It was Martin's first time going over 100 yards as a Raider, and the first time he accomplished that feat since 2015.
Richard finds the end zone as well – Doug Martin wasn't the only Raiders running back to find the end zone, as Jalen Richard made sure he made reservations for six as well. Richard played 23 snaps (37%), and while he only carried the ball four times for 11 yards, and the aforementioned score, he also got in the mix, per usual, in the passing game, hauling in four catches for 40 yards.
Defense
Joseph sets the tone – Head Coach Jon Gruden didn't wax poetic following his team's Monday night win over the Broncos, but he did make sure to say that Karl Joseph's Week 16 effort was the best game he's seen No. 42 play as a Raider. The hard-hitting safety played all 67 defensive snaps, and boy, did he make them count. By game's end, Joseph tallied six tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss, and one quarterback hit, and made the Broncos wide receivers think twice about coming across the middle of the field.
Melvin paces the defense – Without the services of either Gareon Conley or Daryl Worley, Rashaan Melvin stepped in and filled the void on the outside, not only playing every defensive snap, but also leading the team in tackles as well. In total, Melvin finished with 12 tackles, and one tackle for loss, not a bad day at the office by any stretch.
Another one for Harris – Erik Harris enjoyed registering his first career interception so much last weekend in Cincinnati he decided to get No. 2 on primetime just a week later. In addition to his fourth quarter interception, Harris totaled seven tackles and a pass defensed in his 59 defensive snaps (88%).
