Raiders' Fourth-Down Attempts Showed Confidence in Struggling Offense

The Las Vegas Raiders were faced with multiple fourth-down decisions on offense against the Baltimore Ravens. Coach Antonio Pierce made it clear he believes in the unit.

Sep 15, 2024; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew (15) throws during the first half against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images / Reggie Hildred-Imagn Images

The Las Vegas Raiders were able to pull out a victory over Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens in a hard-fought game on the road.

Last week against the Los Angeles Chargers, the Raiders were presented with a decision on fourth down and decided to punt the ball late in the game when they likely should have gone for it. When presented with another fourth-down decision in the third quarter against the Ravens, Coach Antonio Pierce quickly told the team they would go for it on fourth down. 

At the time, the Raiders were down by double-digits in the third quarter. Although the Raiders did not convert on the fourth down, it showed Pierce's confidence in the offense and defense. Shortly after that, the Raiders offense scored 13 points in the fourth quarter en route to their first win of the season.

Pierce’s confidence paid off later in the game when they again went for it on fourth down but converted it. 

 "Well, we talked about it all week," Pierce said. "Like I said prior, there's always moments that we talk about it as a staff, and then I tell the team directly what I'm going to do and what my thought process is. And I told them when we get there, I'm looking for 17. And that's what we did. We came up short, but there was no hesitation. The offense knew they were ready, and we executed. We just didn't finish." 

While the Raiders’ offense seemed to have found a rhythm during the fourth quarter of their game against the Ravens, Pierce quickly noted that the Raiders still have plenty of work to do, especially on the offensive side of the ball. The unit has failed to play more than a quarter of productive football in either game this season. 

"Well, the Raiders got a lot of things that we need to correct,” Pierce said. “I mean, we got to win yesterday, but there's a lot of things in that first quarter that was ugly, and that first half that was ugly. And in that third quarter, that was ugly, to be honest. So, I mean, we're not worried about the Panthers. We got to fix the Raiders."

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