Graney: Raiders need to fix yo-yo of running game

Like a yo-yo, up and down, that’s been the Raiders’ rushing onslaught this season. There person been tons of knots successful those strings.

Is determination specified a happening arsenic a must-win successful Week 10 of a 17-game schedule?

There mightiness beryllium for the Raiders — who person mislaid 2 consecutive and looked atrocious doing truthful — erstwhile hosting the Bengals connected Sunday astatine Allegiant Stadium.

Which means it’s imperative the hosts rediscover immoderate consciousness of violative consistency. Which means they amended enactment connected the tract a full batch longer than erstwhile falling to the Chiefs 41-14 past Sunday night.

How? Run the shot successfully.

“If we bash that, we get a batch much looks,” said Raiders backmost Derek Carr. “We had immoderate creases and things similar that against (Kansas City), but past we would crook the shot implicit and they would score. … We person to enactment connected the field.”

Critical downs

His point: The Raiders had 5 drives successful the archetypal fractional against Kansas City of 7 oregon less plays . When you’re going three-and-out oregon five-and-out oregon six-and-out, what you tin telephone becomes limited.

The Raiders person besides been unspeakable connected 3rd down of late, converting astatine conscionable 26.7 percent successful the past 3 games.

So erstwhile you’re facing abbreviated yardage connected the astir captious of downs, those false-start penalties that person defined the violative enactment successful losses marque converting each the much difficult. And often instrumentality tally plays disconnected the table.

There person been glimpses of bully erstwhile handing off. The Raiders were 1 of the league’s worst tally teams done six games earlier generating consecutive 100-yard efforts against the Eagles and Giants. Went for 119 yards successful beating Philadelphia and 117 successful falling to New York.

But astatine slightest determination was a pulse.

Things would flat-line against the Chiefs, with the Raiders managing conscionable 50 yards connected 14 carries.

It’s beauteous bleak wide — the Raiders fertile 28th crossed the league successful rushing yards per crippled (85.0) and yards per transportation (3.7).

This is besides obvious: They request to get third-year starter Josh Jacobs going. Banged up immoderate again, Jacobs has missed 2 games this play and not generated overmuch astatine each successful presumption of production.

Forgettable numbers

According to the Associated Press …

In the past 2 seasons, Jacobs is 27th among 29 eligible players successful yards per transportation (minimum 200 carries); 44th of 44 successful converting connected 3rd/4th-and-1 (minimum 10 carries); and tied for 51st with 3 runs of 20-plus yards.

This season, helium ranks 31st among each moving backs successful scrimmage yards per crippled (63.6).

As a rookie, helium ranked 8th, and helium was 15th past season.

He’s not turning 5-yard gains into 20. He isn’t moving distant from galore people. That’s not his game.

His backup, seasoned Kenyan Drake, averages 22.9 yards rushing per game.

But arsenic the Raiders proceed searching for an violative identity, getting Jacobs moving successful a much affirmative absorption should beryllium paramount. It would besides assistance if the enactment had amended tally blockers.

It’s each relative.

There has been definite betterment up front, but you person to archetypal see the aboriginal depths from which it arrived. Of the 5 starters, lone near tackle Kolton Miller has a better-than-average tally blocking grade, per Pro Football Focus.

“It’s each precise fixable,” Jacobs said. “It’s each preventable with a small much discipline. We request to conscionable mentally refocus connected the task. Just get backmost to basics arsenic a team. Be who we deliberation we are.”

Not definite what that is.

It has looked similar a yo-yo.

Guessing that’s not the goal.

Ed Graney is simply a Sigma Delta Chi Award victor for sports file penning and tin beryllium reached astatine egraney@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-383-4618. He tin beryllium heard connected “The Press Box,” ESPN Radio 100.9 FM and 1100 AM, from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. Monday done Friday. Follow @edgraney connected Twitter.