Recap: Packers vs Raiders Week 7 -

The Packers beat the Raiders 42-24 in week 7. The game was characterized by offensive dominance as both teams combined for 965 total yards. Green Bay improved to 6-1 while Oakland’s record returns to .500 at 3-3. Read on below for the full Packers vs Raiders recap.

Back in Rhythm

The Packers’ issues with run defense were apparent on the opening drive of the game. The Raiders began with the ball and took it from their own 18-yard line down to the Packers’ 29. Josh Jacobs did it all himself, including a big 42-yard run. He appeared to knick his shoulder on that play and went to the locker room. He would return later in the quarter, but in his absence, this promising drive stalled. Oakland was held to a FG and took a 3-0 lead.

Afterwards, the Packers answered with their own scoring drive. Much like the Raiders, Green Bay’s opening possession featured a heavy dose of their running back. Aaron Jones received back-to-back carries and got the offense close to midfield. A Jimmy Graham reception put them in place for Aaron Rodgers to throw a 21-yard pass to Jones in the end zone. The great adjustment on the football by Jones was all the sweeter considering that he dropped a TD last week. No mistake this time as Jones ran and corner route from the backfield and hauled in the football. It certainly seemed as if Jones has regained his status as the lead-back. 7-3 Packers.

8-Minute Drives

Following a pair of punts, one by each team, the game entered a sequence that took up more than half of the first two quarters. The Raiders began a drive with back-to-back plays involving Josh Jacobs, a run followed by a dump-off pass. This set up a 3rd-down play for Jon Gruden to showcase his play-calling mastery. In an attempt to get his receivers open against excellent defensive backs, Gruden called a pick play and Derek Carr delivered the first-down strike to Keelan Doss.

Oakland’s offensive line was dominant in this contest and it all began in the middle. Center Rodney Hudson was often able to block Kenny Clark one-on-one. In week 4, the Eagles employed a similar approach and it allowed them to send more help blocking the edges. The result for both the Eagles and the Raiders was 0 sacks produced by this potent Packers pass-rush. Carr had ample time to find his receivers throughout the game as the Green Bay secondary could not cover for that long. It was ever apparent on the blitz pick up during Carr’s TD pass to Foster Moreau. The tight end got inside leverage on a slant route with Jaire Alexander in coverage. The Raiders took a 10-7 lead on a drive that lasted 8:28 of game time.

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Not to be outdone, the Packers offense had themselves some extended time on the field in the ensuing possession. Full-back Danny Vitale was lined up as a tight end and was able to get open for a 21-yard reception and the initial first-down of the drive.

Their offensive line performed as well as the Raiders unit. Even so, at times, Aaron Rodgers operated as his own pass protector by getting the ball out quickly against a blitz and finding Geronimo Allison on a 3rd down slant route. It was a great sight to see Allison active after taking a scary hit on the previous Monday night. He contributed as did Jamaal Williams who left the Eagles game in a similarly violent hit the head. Williams capped off the Packers 8:06 drive with a 2-yard receiving TD to make the score 14-10 Green Bay.

Turnover Point

After those long possessions, the Raiders had the chance to score once more before halftime. Things began well for them as on the third play of the drive, the Packers secondary ran into a massive communication issue. Tight end Darren Waller ran a seam route and was covered by Adrian Amos. In Green Bay’s zone defense, Amos passes off responsibility to fellow safety Will Redmond. Only, Redmond did not know that and Waller was left free over the middle. Derek Carr recognized that and put a great pass right on his tight end for 48 yards. Credit to Redmond who recovered just in time to tackle Waller at the 3-yard line and prevented a TD.

This turned out to be a key tackle by Redmond. Immediately after that, B.J. Goodson and Preston Smith held Josh Jacobs for a 1-yard gain. On the next play, Goodson covered Jacobs on a route out of the backfield. Carr rolled out to his right and seemed to be looking for Jacobs as a target. Seeing the tight coverage, Carr decided to take matters into his own hand and tried to get to the pilon. Racing to the corner around Blake Martinez, Carr somehow stayed in-bounds. This was to the detriment of Raiders fans as he reached for the pilon with Martinez right there and fumbled out of the end zone. In a strange yet increasingly popular rule, fumbling out of the end zone counts as a touchback. This promising drive ended with 0 points for Oakland.

Double-Check

Armed with 1:49 left on the clock and one timeout remaining, Rodgers led the team into scoring range. There was a roughing the passer call on this drive, one of the few times that the Raiders got to the quarterback. Overall, Oakland had 8 penalties in the game. Meanwhile, Green Bay’s discipline was at a season-best as they only accumulated 3 penalties.

Geronimo Allison also had a key 3rd-down reception to set up the Packers in Oakland territory. Two plays later, and with only 12 seconds remaining in the half, Rodgers found Jake Kumerow along the sideline for a 37-yard score. Adding insult to injury, Kumerow kept himself in bounds far enough to reach for the pilon. Unlike Derek Carr who fumbled this opportunity away, Kumerow held strong onto the football and produced a TD. Not to be outdone by Jon Gruden, Matt LaFleur created a beautiful design on that play. Three wide receivers were lined up on the left side, while Kumerow was alone on the right side. This forced the safety to cover the 3-WR side and left Kumerow in a 1-on-1 situation.

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Coming out of halftime, the Packers remained aggressive and their drive began with a 59-yard reception by Marquez Valdes-Scantling. The Raiders defensive front did enough to force Rodgers to scramble out of the pocket and delayed his throw. Otherwise Valdes-Scantling, who had a lot of separation, who have likely scored a TD right there. Instead, because Rodgers threw late, it gave Gareon Conley enough time to recover and make the tackle. No problem for the Packers as a series of short passes to Aaron Jones, Jimmy Graham and Geronimo Allison got the football inside the 5-yard line. On 2nd-and-goal, Rodgers audibled out of a run play, rolled to the right, and found the space to run it in himself for the TD. That made the score 28-10 Packers and the never looked back.

It was the classic double score, before and after halftime, that the Packers have taken advantage of countless times. It truly was a vintage game for Rodgers and the offense.

Bad Coverage

When Derek Carr fumbled the score was 14-10. Suddenly, down by 18, the Raiders needed a drive to keep the game within the grasp. The main weapons were Josh Jacobs, who ran 5 times for 23 yards on this drive, and Darren Waller. The Packers coverage issues continued as the tight end caught a couple of passes, both for first-downs, and got Oakland in good field position. Eventually, Waller capped it off with a TD reception on yet another blown coverage by the secondary. One could see the Green Bay’s defense was still communicating right before the ball was snapped and Waller took advantage. He got over the top of B.J. Goodson and closed the gap on the score at 28-17.

Next, Green Bay hen had themselves a drive of their own. One thing that became apparent was how Matt LaFleur was using pre-snap motion to get players open. A lot of teams use motion to see if a defense is in man or zone coverage but LaFleur added the wrinkle of targeting the motion player. It happened with Jamaal Williams motioning out of the backfield to get him the ball in space on a quick throw. A few plays later, Allen Lazard motioned outside from the slot in order to get him one-on-one on the outside. It worked as Lazard high-pointed the ball and set up a 1st-and-goal. On the very next play, Jimmy Graham, who was lined up in the right slot, managed to get open on a crossing route. Aaron Rodgers found him for the 3-yard TD and made it a 35-17 game.

Making A Stand

The Raiders offense would not lay down as they drove down the field with a series of 1st-downs. That included a 27-yard run by Josh Jacobs which featured more great run-blocking. The design was to run right at Kenny Clark who was unable to get off of Rodney Hudson’s block. Left guard Richie Incognito even chipped in on the Clark block before getting to the 2nd level and providing Jacobs with the hole needed to get into Packers territory.

Eventually, Oakland got right down to the 1-yard line. On 4th-and-goal, Jacobs attempted to leap over the mass of humanity in order to break the goal-line plane. Unfortunately for the Raiders, B.J. Goodson and Kevin King were in perfect position to prevent Jacobs from crossing and it was a turnover on downs.

Red-Zone Red-Light

After getting the football on their own 1-yard line, the Packers went 3-and-out. J.K. Scott kicked a 57-yard punt from his own end zone and prevented the Raiders from having excellent field position. Former Packer Trevor Davis returned it to the Packers 43-yard line.

A penalty on the return pushed them behind mid-field, but the Raiders still put a drive together. Marcel Ateman managed to high point a pass on 3rd-down, even when covered by Jaire Alexander. This set up Oakland in the red-zone once again. However, Derek Carr threw an INT on the very next play. Kevin King had tight coverage on Darren Waller and managed to come down with the pick.

The Raiders got into the red zone four times, after that Packers 8-minute drive. On those four opportunities, Oakland combined for 7 points and 3 turnovers. That series of plays really determined the game as the Raiders were never able to recover and the Packers took advantage.

Big Plays

Each team put together a TD drive in the 4th quarter. Both possessions were incredibly quick. For instance, the Packers only needed three plays and they made them count. On 3rd-and-4, Marquez Valdes-Scantling got open on an intermediate out route. With the help of some good down-filed blocking by Aaron Jones, Valdes-Scantling used his speed took it to the house for a 74-yard score. It was Aaron Ridgers 5th TD pass of the game and it became a 42-17 contest for the Packers.

Later in the quarter, the Raiders only needed 37 seconds to score their own TD. Mike Glennon came in at quarterback for mop-up duty and got things started with a 19-yard pass to Keelan Doss. A few plays later, Darren Waller got open for the final score of the game, a 17-yard TD to make it 42-24 Packers.

Up Next

These last two games have been arguably Aaron Rodgers’ best performances as a passer. The only difference between this match and the Lions’ was that his receivers made plays by getting open and coming down with the football. The result: Rodgers obtained the first single-game perfect passer rating of his career.

Both teams should feel pretty good about their offenses. Minus the turnovers, the Raiders moved the football really well, even with being shorthanded at the wide receiver position. There were several coverage breakdowns and communication errors by the Packers secondary. That will definitely need to be addressed before their next meeting, a road game in Kansas City. Oakland meanwhile, travel to Houston next week in hopes of getting back to above .500.

Thank you for reading this Packers vs Raiders recap. Be sure to check out Full Press Coverage for more great NFL content.

– Kyle Senra is the managing editor for Full Press Coverage Packers. He covers the NFL. Like and follow on Follow @nyama_ks Follow @FPC_Packers and Facebook.