Raiders' Offense Struggling Mightily in One Specific Area

There are many areas the Las Vegas Raiders can improve. However, one area needs more improvement than others.

Sep 22, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Gardner Minshew (15) throws the ball against the Carolina Panthers in the first half at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Las Vegas Raiders’ offense has not done well on third down this season. On third downs, Las Vegas has routinely thrown the ball short of the first-down marker.

Coach Antonio Pierce said the reason they have done so has more to do with execution than the play call itself. 

"That's a little bit of execution, too,” Pierce said. “We're not drawing too many plays where we're short of the sticks. So you call a play, you've got to execute it as well. Little bit of both."  

Quarterback Gardner Minshew II believes many things contribute to why the Raiders struggle on third down. He noted the opposing defenses have done a solid job against the Raiders on third down and have forced them to settle for short gains and completions short of the first down. This has led to the Raiders' abysmal third-down conversion rate.

"I think that's a combination of a lot of things,” Minshew said. “They had some good calls on our third downs this week where our primary was covered, and had to move on and didn't execute it well enough there. So, hats off to them. And then we’ve just got to make plays, keep us on the field. We got to make these plays come alive, make them work. And that starts with me, and I got to do a better job of keeping us on the field."

The Raiders' offense only converted on three of its11 third-down attempts against the Carolina Panthers. This is after the Raiders only converted on four of their 12 third-down attempts against the Baltimore Ravens and five of 14 attempts against the Los Angeles Chargers.

All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams agrees with Minshew, saying multiple factors play a part in the offense’s third-down struggles. Adams believes the goal is to get the first down any way possible, whether throwing the ball short of the first down and gaining yards after catch, gaining or throwing the ball past the first down marker. 

“The name of the game is to get the first down,” Adams said. “So sometimes it's going to be put the ball in Tae's [Davante Adams] hand and see if he can go get a few extra. So, it's not necessarily going to be on the call every time. I like to think that, obviously, if it's a zone coverage and I get the ball short, it's going to be a little bit more difficult. 

“But if I get the ball man coverage, and I'm short, I take that - at least the way I look at it is the coaches and play caller, that's them saying, ‘I'll take 17 over what they got going.’ So sometimes it's not the best idea, but sometimes you got to throw it short and go get it just based off of what you presented with on defense." 

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