A lot of the talk about this game likely will revolve around the gutsy two point conversion at the end of the game that put the Raiders on top. It was truly the call of a coach that had trust in his offense to deliver, just as much as he didn’t trust his defense to stop Brees and the Saints. They very nearly didn’t stop them in fact.
Prized free agent pick up Smith was frequently abused by Brees and eventually gave way to former first round pick, DJ Hayden. Hayden didn’t do much better, losing out by poor officiating or great plays after replacing Smith. There is work to do in the secondary, just as much as there is work to do up front. Mack seemed like a non-factor for much of the game.
Running back Murray will likely be playing with one eye in the mirror going forward. Jalen Richard looked better and that might see him leap over Washington for the number two role. Either way with the two rookies in the game, it felt like the Raiders offense shifted up a gear.
Cooper started strong with a 137 yard performance, showing he and Carr have continued to build chemistry. Crabtree on the other side had one more catch – with seven – for 87 yards plus was the one to bring down that game winning two point catch. However he also gifted Brees a fifteen yard start on the end of game drive with his after catch celebrations.
All told, the old Raiders would have lost this game big to the Saints but these Raiders found a way to pull out a win.