Subtle changes lead to immediate results for Raiders’ offense

The Raiders haven’t thrown retired the violative playbook designed by Jon Gruden conscionable due to the fact that he’s nary longer the team’s caput coach.

But the discourtesy does look a spot antithetic present that Greg Olson is calling plays.

One of the astir evident changes successful the archetypal crippled nether Olson’s absorption was the magnitude of play fakes backmost Derek Carr was utilizing connected his dropbacks.

Carr utilized play enactment conscionable 11.5 percent of the clip implicit the archetypal 5 games of the season, by acold the lowest percent of immoderate squad successful the league.

In past Sunday’s 34-24 triumph implicit the Denver Broncos, Carr ran play enactment connected 31 percent of his dropbacks. The quality was stark and registered 8.2 yards per play, a play precocious by a wide margin.

It whitethorn person been a large origin successful the violative enactment having its champion crippled arsenic a radical arsenic they were capable to support the Broncos’ antiaircraft beforehand guessing much than normal.

Olson declined to accidental whether the accrued complaint of play enactment oregon adjacent the quality of the surface walk that was often missing from the discourtesy nether Gruden was going to beryllium a hallmark of his play-calling oregon if it was conscionable game-plan circumstantial against Denver.

That should clearer erstwhile the Raiders big the Philadelphia Eagles successful a 1:05 p.m. crippled Sunday astatine Allegiant Stadium.

“We are conscionable going to effort and bash immoderate we deliberation arsenic an violative unit we request to bash to determination the football,” Olson said. “So immoderate weeks possibly more, immoderate less. I’m fortunate with the unit that we person with the fig of erstwhile caput coaches and coordinators, young coaches. … Just a bully premix of the violative unit with a bully premix of ideas and we are conscionable trying to find the champion plays for the radical that we person retired connected the field.

“But bash we judge successful the play action? Yes. Do we judge successful the surface game? Yes. Do they complement 1 another? We consciousness similar they should complement 1 different going forward.”

Olson isn’t a alien to calling plays, having done it successful the past with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Jacksonville Jaguars. He was besides privy to each telephone and the thought process down them moving nether Gruden the past 4 seasons.

He utilized that clip to marque himself acceptable for erstwhile the accidental presented itself again and adjacent though the script was unforeseen, helium wasn’t overwhelmed, adjacent connected a abbreviated week.

“Since I’ve been with Jon, I’ve ever prepared myself successful lawsuit thing happened,” Olson said. “You’ve ever got to hole yourself, hole to telephone a crippled successful the mentation passim the week. And evidently with Jon it was much of suggestions during the game, but those suggestions were based upon the mentation of perchance calling the game. So, it was comfortable. I had a large mentor successful Jon that continually prepped maine the 4 years I’ve been with him.”

While the changes to the passing crippled were evident, they besides seemed to unfastened up the moving game. The numbers weren’t great, but Josh Jacobs had a season-high 53 yards and the rushing onslaught was astatine slightest effectual capable to support Denver’s defence disconnected balance.

Quarterback Derek Carr believes that’s an facet of the discourtesy that volition person to proceed to get amended successful bid for the passing crippled to proceed to thrive.

“It’s going to beryllium captious to america doing what we privation to do,” helium said. “It’s hard capable to summation yards successful this league fto unsocial if you conscionable basal successful 1 spot and driblet backmost and fto guys know, ‘Hey, this is however we are going to person to bash it.’ It’s not an casual mode to bash things, spot me. It’s hard to bash that successful the NFL, conscionable driblet backmost each play.”

Carr said helium talked to Jacobs the nighttime earlier the Broncos’ crippled and said it doesn’t substance if they propulsion the shot 70 times oregon 5 times, arsenic agelong arsenic they tin determination the ball.

Any occurrence successful the moving crippled volition besides assistance marque the screens and play actions much effective.

“That’s the mindset, but whenever we tin bash a balanced onslaught that helps play action, that helps maine get retired of the pocket,” helium said. “Those rushers don’t cognize wherever I’m going to beryllium astatine each play. That helps not lone the quarterback, but it helps the full offense, and they did immoderate large things.

”We had a batch of play actions that were bully for america and immoderate screens that were bully for us, maine getting retired of the pouch that was bully for us, and that stems from the moving game. So it was decidedly immense for us, particularly past week.”

The Raiders besides had the payment of Olson calling plays for the archetypal clip successful this system, which created uncertainty astir tendencies. Now opponents volition commencement to survey Olson’s offense.

That could marque immoderate of the deception successful the passing crippled adjacent much important.

Contact Adam Hill astatine ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ connected Twitter.