Raiders defense in midst of another disappointing showing

It’s been an ugly stretch for a Las Vegas Raiders defense that never seems to get any better.

It hasn’t mattered who the head coach, defensive coordinator or general manager has been for the Silver and Black. The Las Vegas Raiders defense remains a liability and it cost them once again in their latest loss,  a 30-27 overtime setback to the visiting Chargers in a contest that saw Jon Gruden’s team take a three-point lead in the extra session and only to have the Bolts drive 75 yards in five plays for the victory.

It’s worth noting that Los Angeles came into the game with a 4-9 record and losers of their previous nine divisional games.

Las Vegas’ defenders gave up 402 total yards, sacked Chargers’ rookie quarterback Justin Herbert just once and did not force a turnover. It marked the fifth consecutive contest that the Raiders allowed at least 28 points. And the team has now dropped four of its last five games after a promising 6-3 start.

All told, the club has surrendered a whopping 180 points in those aforementioned five outings – albeit that total includes a pair of pick-sixes by quarterback Derek Carr (who left Thursday’s game with a groin issue and will be sidelined for a few weeks, via NFL.com’s Adam Maya).

Following the club’s 44-27 home loss to the Colts in Week 14, defensive coordinator Paul Guenther was fired (via Scott Polacek of Yahoo! Sports) and veteran coach Rod Marinelli was elevated. But it was the same old story for a franchise that can’t seem to get out of its own way when it comes to this side of the ball.

Entering Week 15, the Raiders were ranked 25th in the NFL across the board when it came to total yards per game allowed, rushing defense and passing yards surrendered. In 13 seasons from 2007-19, the franchise finished 21st or lower in total defense 10 times in 13 years.

Indicative of the team’s problems in this area is the 2016 season. The then-Oakland Raiders finished 12-4 and captured a Wild Card berth. Khalil Mack was the NFL Defensive Player of the Year thanks to a monster season. But the defense was 26th in the league in total yards allowed per game, the club allowed 385 points and gave up a whopping 45 offensive touchdowns.

In recent offseasons, Gruden and general manager Mike Mayock have added talent on this side of the ball such as 2019 first-round picks such as Clelin Ferrell and Johnathan Abram — both of whom were out against the Chargers — and free agents like linebacker Cory Littleton. But the bottom line is that these Raiders have already given up 421 points and 47 offensive touchdowns with two games to play.

The team has totaled only 15 takeaways and 16 sacks. Granted, there’s some young talent on this unit but it hasn’t responded on a consistent basis quite yet. And “quite yet” seems to be the unfortunate calling card for this group on an annual basis.