Raiders hit rock bottom in home loss to Falcons

Nothing has gone right for the Oakland Raiders this season, and on Sunday they may have hit rock bottom.  Behind an embarrassing showing by their offense, the Raiders were manhandled wired to wire by the Atlanta Falcons losing 24-0 in front of their home fans.  The win improved the Falcons record to 5-3, while the Raiders dropped to 2-6.  The way the team played against Atlanta it’s hard to believe that this Oakland team was able to win two games, and the local media is starting to call them the “worst Raiders team in history”.

The Raiders’ offensive ineptitude in the first half was especially embarrassing, and they headed to the locker room with -2 net yards and no first downs.  At the half Atlanta held a 309-(-2) yardage edge and had gained 20 first downs en route to a 24-0 lead.  The Raiders pitiful first half performance represented the first time that an NFL team had been held to negative yardage in the first half in 16 years.  Things didn’t get much better in the 2nd half, and Oakland finished with 77 net yards of total offense—67 yards passing and a paltry 10 yards on the ground.  That’s the fewest yards by a Raiders team in 47 years (1961).

The time of possession disparity also had historical implications, with Atlanta enjoying an overwhelming 45:15 to 14:45 time edge.  That’s the longest time of possession in the NFL since 1999.  It’s not a surprise that the Raiders are frustrated and looking for answers according to safety Gabril Wilson:

"During the week, we look like we're a Super Bowl team, and we come out there and we're damn near the laughingstock of the league, and it's ridiculous. I've never been in a situation where it's been like this, and I don't know what it is.”

"The people in this locker room have to look at themselves in the mirror and see exactly what they're bringing to the table, and if they're not bringing anything to the table, then get off the ship, period."

Wilson’s comments were an impressive attempt at leadership in contrast to shell-shocked interim coach Tom Cable’s less than inspiring post game observation:

"Quite simply, we just did not do anything in terms of what we were trying to do offensively. It was not a very good effort today by the Oakland Raiders."

Cable is now 1-3 in his tenure as Oakland’s head coach.  The three losses have been by a combined 76 points and despite the OT win over the Jets the Raiders have done nothing but regress since the firing of Lane Kiffin.