Why the Raiders offense has struggled so much this year — and how they can fix it (2024)

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HENDERSON, Nev. — It’s no surprise the Las Vegas Raiders (1-3) are struggling on defense through four games, but their offense was expected to be good. Instead, through four games, the Raiders have one of the worst offenses in the NFL.

This offseason, the Raiders brought back four of five starters on an offensive line that overachieved last season. They made what they felt was an upgrade at quarterback, going from Derek Carr to Jimmy Garoppolo. They swapped out tight end Darren Waller for Austin Hooper and Michael Mayer, added Jakobi Meyers, DeAndre Carter and Tre Tucker to a receiving corps that already featured Davante Adams and Hunter Renfrow and re-signed running back Josh Jacobs following a preseason holdout. With coach Josh McDaniels dialing up the plays, the Raiders figured they’d be able to put up points with just about anyone.

Four games is a small sample size, but there’s no denying the offense has regressed from last season. From both a gross production and efficiency standpoint, they’ve gotten worse. (Unless otherwise noted, all statistics are courtesy of TruMedia with the Raiders’ league rankings in parentheses.)

Garoppolo was concussed against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 3 and didn’t play against the Los Angeles Chargers last weekend (he officially cleared concussion protocol on Friday). But that’s not enough to explain how the Raiders offense has struggled as a unit. Their issues run deep, and McDaniels and the coaching staff must quickly identify solutions before this season spirals out of control.

Here are the five most pressing areas the Raiders need to improve to turn the offense around.

Reviving the run game

The Raiders’ run game has been anemic. The offensive line has struggled to run block, and teams are loading the box against them, which has left Jacobswith little room to run. The NFL leader in rushing yards last season is now averaging just 0.3 yards before contact, which is the third-worst mark among players with at least 50 carries, according to Next Gen Sports. He’s adept at breaking tackles and making defenders miss, but that only goes so far.

Jacobs, who missed OTAs and training camp as part of a contract dispute, cited a lack of chemistry early on, but the run game has remained inefficient even as more time has passed. That’s reflective of the Raiders simply getting manhandled up front. The O-line carries most of that burden, but it also falls on the tight ends — Mayer and Hooper have both struggled as blockers — and receivers not carrying their weight.

The Raiders have attempted to bring in extra blockers for additional support. They use 21 personnel (two running backs, one tight end) on 19.6 percent of their snaps (fifth). Additionally, they lead the league in usage of their jumbo package (six offensive linemen) at 9.1 percent (the next closest team is the Buffalo Bills at 4.9 percent). Still, the run game has been in a rut.

Another major factor is the Raiders getting into positions where it’s difficult to remain committed to running the ball. According to TruMedia, they’ve had the fourth-most time of possession while trailing by double digits in the league. Naturally, having to overcome significant deficits so frequently has forced the Raiders to air it out to catch up. That’s a huge factor in why the Raiders are averaging just 21.5 rushing attempts per game (27th).

“I think there’s a lot of things at play there,” McDaniels said Thursday. “We’ve got to play well early in the game, try to get the game where we want it, and then try to see if we can establish the type of consistency and rhythm and commitment to (the run game) that we want.”

Diversifying the pass game

The Raiders’ passing game hasn’t been bad — they’re completing 66.2 percent of their passes (17th), averaging 7.1 yards per attempt (14th) and are 17th in EPA per dropback — but it has been firmly mediocre. The issue here has been predictability.

The only three Raiders who’ve received double-digit targets this season are Adams, Jacobs and Meyers. The trio has accounted for a whopping 77.1 percent of the team’s targets. While they’ve done a good job of translating those opportunities into production, it makes it much easier for defenses to key in on slowing them down when they’re essentially the only players getting looks.

The weird part is there’s no good reason for the Raiders to be living this way. Renfrow, who has just seven targets, is a former Pro Bowler they’re paying over $11.5 million this season. Hooper, who has five targets, has been a productive receiving tight end for years. Carter, who has three targets, was a reliable contributor for the Chargers just last season. Mayer, who has two targets, was a second-round pick this year who most projected would be taken in the first round. Tucker, who has one target, has dynamic speed that has gone untapped.

The Raiders also haven’t had much variety when it comes to the areas of the field they target. Just 8.1 percent of their pass attempts have traveled 20 or more air yards (27th); the league average is 11.1 percent. Also, only 39 percent of Garoppolo’s passes have traveled outside the numbers (23rd among quarterbacks with at least 50 pass attempts).

In short, the majority of the Raiders’ pass attempts are short to intermediate throws going to the middle of the field. That’s where Garoppolo is most comfortable throwing the ball, but it simply makes the passing offense too predictable, especially with only a few players being targeted.

Red zone play calling and execution

The Raiders couldn’t turn red zone possessions into touchdowns frequently enough last season, and that has continued this season. Just 46.2 percent of their red zone drives have resulted in touchdowns (T-24th). When asked about that figure, McDaniels homed in on the run game.

“The easiest way to score is to obviously hand the ball off and take it into the end zone,” McDaniels said. “We haven’t done that as well as we would have liked to.”

In the red zone, the Raiders have attempted just 17 runs (T-16th) and are averaging 1.9 yards per rush (26th). That has led to a pass-first approach in the red zone — they’ve thrown it 21 times (T-eighth) — but it hasn’t worked particularly well as they’re 24th in offensive EPA per dropback on those plays.

“In those situations, there’s really no shortcut,” McDaniels said. “They know you’re throwing it, you know you’re throwing it and you’ve got to do a good job of executing, protecting, getting open, finding the single coverage. We need to improve in that area so that we have the opportunity to score on early downs — first or second down — but if we get stuck in those situations, we’re going to have to execute a little bit better than we have.”

Extending drives

Success rate is a statistic that encapsulates how successful an offense is at moving the ball. On first or second down, a play is deemed successful if it gains at least 50 percent of the required yardage for a first down. On third or fourth down, a play is only successful if it gains a first down. In overall success rate, the Raiders are ranked 14th.

What has killed the Raiders’ ability to stay on the field is their ineptitude on third down. They’re converting just 31 percent of their third downs (30th). It’s no coincidence that they’re averaging only 57.5 plays per game (T-28th) and are 26th in time of possession per game.

Avoiding turnovers

The Raiders have done a terrible job of protecting the football. They’ve committed 10 turnovers (T-second most in the league), which have resulted in 37 points allowed off turnovers (second most in the league). Not only does turning the ball over take possessions away from the offense, but it also puts unnecessary pressure on a defense that’s already leaky.

The primary culprits have been the quarterbacks. Garoppolo has thrown six interceptions (T-most in the league) in just three games. Rookie Aidan O’Connell, who stepped in for Garoppolo in Week 4, added three turnovers of his own with two lost fumbles and an interception. The quarterbacks have combined to commit nine of the team’s 10 turnovers.

That trend can’t continue. As McDaniels said after O’Connell’s performance last Sunday, “Playing quarterback in our league starts with taking care of the football.”

Clearly, the Raiders have plenty to work on to get their offense on track. It’ll have to be a collective effort to pull it off.

“It’s fundamentals, it’s details, it’s execution,” McDaniels said. “Offensive football is never about one person. It can’t be. There is not one specific solution. We’ve all got to do better.”

(Photo of Josh Jacobs being tackled by Kenneth Murray Jr.: Katelyn Mulcahy / Getty Images)

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Tashan Reed is a senior writer for The Athletic covering the Las Vegas Raiders. He previously covered Florida State football for The Athletic. Prior to joining The Athletic, he covered high school and NAIA college sports for the Columbia Missourian, Mizzou football, men’s basketball and women’s basketball for SBNation blog Rock M Nation, wrote stories focused on the African-American community for The St. Louis American and was a sports intern at the Commercial Appeal in Memphis through the Sports Journalism Institute. Follow Tashan on Twitter @tashanreed