Oakland Raiders: 3 Questions Left Unanswered after Week 1

Oakland dropped its first game of the season on Monday night.
Kelley L Cox-US PRESSWIRE

The expectations were high for the Oakland Raiders in Week 1, but the team left O.co Coliseum with a loss to the San Diego Chargers.

Carson Palmer was a big question mark heading into the season, but he completed 70 percent of his passes and didn't turn the ball over once.

The Raiders also did a solid job of cutting back on penalties. They only committed six on Monday night, but defensive tackle Tommy Kelly was flagged for being offsides twice on third down which helped keep the Chargers' drives alive.

Oakland only scored 14 points all game, and it took the team 59 minutes to get its first touchdown. With a matchup against the Miami Dolphins awaiting in Week 2, there are still questions surrounding the Raiders that must be answered if they want to make the playoffs.

Who Will Fill in at Long Snapper?

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Jon Condo was elected to back-to-back Pro Bowls in 2010 and 2011 for the Oakland Raiders, and his absence in the game proved to be extremely costly.

Oakland was forced to use backup long snapper Travis Goethel when Condo left with a concussion in the second quarter. For Goethel, it was one of the worst games a long snapper could ever have. He bounced one snap to Shane Lechler, and then rolled another one to him as the crowd groaned. 

Both botched snaps resulted in San Diego points and the third-year linebacker became the person to blame for Oakland's 22-14 loss on Monday night.

Granted, the long snapper isn't the most talked about position on the field, but after Goethel's performance, the Raiders must find a solution to the problem until Condo is able to return.

The Raiders have the best punter in the league, but that doesn't do them any good if they can't get him the ball.

Oakland signed Travis Tripucka to fill in for Condo, and after watching last night's performance, anybody is better than Goethel.

Will Greg Knapp Always Keep It Conservative?

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Carson Palmer threw for nearly 300 yards on Monday Night, but it took him 32 completions to do it.

It seemed as if every time Palmer stepped back in the pocket, he checked the ball down to Darren McFadden for a minimal gain. McFadden's 13 catches for 86 yards shows how conservative the Raiders offense was.

Oakland didn't do anything to stretch the field on Monday night. Instead, offensive coordinator Greg Knapp decided to keep Palmer from unleashing his arm in favor of meaningless dump-offs.

The Raiders had injuries to their wide receivers, but they didn't take the chances with the deep ball to excite the crowd and generate momentum.

Three-yard passes will only get you so far.

Will Oakland Bring in Another Receiver?

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Denarius Moore and Jacoby Ford both missed opening night with injuries, and Darrius Heyward-Bey only had three catches for 43 yards in the Raiders' loss.

Darren McFadden led the team by far with 13 receptions, and had more of an impact as a receiver than a running back as Oakland failed to stretch the field against the Chargers defense.

McFadden was supposed to be the workhorse for the Raiders on Monday night, but I don't think anybody thought he would get 13 catches.

Oakland is paper-thin at receiver right now with Moore and Ford out of the lineup. With a pair of unproven rookies on the team and the absence of their No. 2 and No. 3 receivers, the Raiders need to bring in another wideout to help Carson Palmer out.

According to espn.com, the Raiders worked out Jabbar Gaffney last week and could bring him in to help the receiving corps while Moore and Ford nurse their injuries.