Every loss leaves behind something to build on, something to fix, and something nobody wants to watch twice. The Raiders got all three against the Los Angeles Rams Sunday, and one of them should worry Raiders coach Klint Kubiak more than the rest.
The good: The Raiders finally showed up after halftime
To be honest, the second half looked like a different team wearing Silver & Black. The defense held the Rams to one touchdown after the break, and the Raiders outscored them 15-7 over the final two quarters.
Wide receiver Tre Tucker lit the fuse, hauling in 78 yards on one possession with a 41-yard catch before capping it with a 37-yard score. The 41-yarder was his fourth play of 40-plus yards this season, tied for the most in the NFL.
Meanwhile, linebacker Nakobe Dean dove for an interception that gave
the Raiders their second takeaway of the day, after defensive tackle JJ Pegues had punched a fumble loose earlier. Unfortunately, their best football came after the game had slipped away.
The bad: Another early hole at home
The Raiders won the coin toss and took the ball instead of deferring as they had after previous coin-toss wins, and the opening possession died after three snaps. From what it seems, the tone was set right there, because the Rams reached the end zone on four straight first-half drives.
Be that as it may, the bigger concern is how familiar the script has become. The Raiders trailed by double digits at home for the 29th time in their 55 games in Las Vegas, the second most by any home team since 2020.
Nobody can say for sure whether deferring would have changed anything, but a team on a four-game skid can't keep spotting opponents 25 points.
The ugly: Getting pushed around on the ground
The Rams ran 38 times for 199 yards, while the Raiders ran just 17 times for 48. However, the number that stings most is first downs on the ground, where Los Angeles piled up 11, and the Raiders managed just two.
Rams running backs Kyren Williams and Blake Corum averaged 6.2 and 5.5 yards per carry respectively, while running back Ashton Jeanty managed just 1.9 ypc. Honestly, no amount of passing can paper over a team getting beaten at the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball.
The New York Jets are up next, and the trenches are where Kubiak's staff has the most work to do before kickoff.
This article originally appeared on Raiders Wire: The good, the bad and the ugly from Raiders 35-21 Week 7 loss to Rams
