Sunday highlighted how unpredictable the NFL can be, with several underdogs pulling off surprising victories.
The biggest surprise was the Raiders, who were 8 1/2-point underdogs, coming back from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter to beat the Ravens 26-23.
Now, the 0-2 Carolina Panthers, who are changing their quarterback, are coming to town. This time, Las Vegas (1-1) is favored by 5 1/2 points, according to BetMGM Sportsbook. The Raiders need to stay focused and not underestimate a team in a desperate situation.
If coach Antonio Pierce’s comments on Monday are any indication, the Raiders are aware of the need to stay sharp.
“We’ve got a lot of things that we need to correct,” he said. “It was a win yesterday, but there were a lot of things in that first quarter that were ugly, in that first half that were ugly and in that third quarter that were ugly.
We’re not worried about the Panthers. We’ve got to fix the Raiders.”
Pierce is correct. The Raiders had a great fourth quarter, but they can’t depend on such comebacks to fix the many issues they have, including a running game that hasn’t yet performed well and a conservative offensive strategy that only opened up in the fourth quarter.
Given the Raiders’ talent, adjusting to a more aggressive game plan should be manageable. However, it’s unclear if they can resolve their running game issues.
Without fixing these problems, what the Raiders achieved on Sunday might not be sustainable.
“Fourth quarter,” Pierce said, “is what it needs to look like for all four quarters.”
