Redskins vs. Raiders: Takeaways from Oakland'S 24-14 Loss to Washington

The Oakland Raiders blew a 14-point first-quarter lead and lost 24-14 to the Washington Redskins to fall to 1-3.

The breakdowns were rampant, from an offense that gave up seven sacks and went scoreless over the final 48 minutes to a defense that inexplicably allowed Redskins’ wide receiver Pierre Garcon to score the game-winning touchdown on a quick slant without a defender laying a hand on him.

Oakland quarterback Matt Flynn, starting in place of injured Terrelle Pryor, played so poorly he was booed resoundingly throughout the game.

Even normally reliable kicker Sebastian Janikowski had an off day when he pulled a 52-yard field-goal attempt wide left.

Here’s a quick recap of some top takeaways from the game.

Flynn Struggles in Loss, Booed by Oakland Fans

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Matt Flynn’s day started off decently enough when he threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to rookie tight end Mychal Rivera on the Raiders’ second possession.

It went downhill after that.

While Pryor walked the sidelines in black shorts and shirt, Flynn offered up a performance that was a stark reminder of why he lost the starting job in the preseason. He was sacked seven times, fumbled twice and threw an interception that was returned 45 yards for a touchdown.

He was also stopped cold on a quarterback sneak on a 4th-and-inches play in the fourth quarter that ended whatever hopes the Raiders had of pulling off a comeback.

On top of that, Flynn was booed by the Oakland crowd almost from the first time he stepped on the field. It only got worse the longer the game went.

He finished 21-of-32 for 227 yards, though many of his completions came on passes that were poorly thrown.

“I don’t think he saw the field very good today,” Raiders head coach Dennis Allen said. “I think he was obviously part of some of the sacks that we gave up. We didn’t get it done and that’s really the bottom line.”

Special Teams Has Up-and-Down Day

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The Raiders twice came up big on special teams, though kicker Sebastian Janikowski wasn’t a part of it.

Rashad Jennings easily broke through Washington’s line to block a punt by Sav Rocca early in the first quarter, and Jeremy Stewart recovered it in the end zone for a touchdown to give Oakland a 7-0 lead less than five minutes into the game.

The block was Oakland’s first since Oct. 10, 2010.

In the second quarter facing a 4th-and-1 from their own 28, the Raiders lined up to kick. Punter Marquette King shifted wide right just before the snap. Taiwan Jones, the up-man, took the hike and sprinted around the left end for a 19-yard gain.

The fake worked perfectly for two reasons. The Redskins were clearly caught off-guard by it, and Jones is a former running back and one of the fastest players on Oakland’s roster. Washington never had a chance.

Conversely, Janikowski missed on a 52-yard field-goal attempt in the third quarter which left Washington with great field position. It’s Janikowski’s third miss in four games. He had three misses for all of 2012.

McFadden a Non-Factor After Early Injury

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The plan going in for Oakland was a heavy dose of Darren McFadden against a Washington defense that has been terrible against the run this season.

Those plans went awry when McFadden suffered a slight hamstring pull on the Raiders’ second possession.

McFadden appeared to get injured after handing the ball off to Jacoby Ford for a short gain out of the Wildcat formation. He jogged off the field and sat out the rest of the drive, returned briefly to carry twice on the next series, then headed to the locker room for the remainder of the half.

Rashad Jennings replaced McFadden and finished with 45 yards on 15 carries.

Oakland also lost fullback Marcel Reece to a knee injury, leaving the Raiders without their entire starting backfield.

“That doesn’t happen too often,” center Stefen Wisniewski said. “That’s probably part of the reason we struggled, but we still should have been able to move the ball better than that. We have to convert on third downs. I don’t think we converted more than one or two the last three quarters.”

Rookie Cornerback Learning the Hard Way

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Cornerback D.J. Hayden continues to suffer through a rough rookie campaign.

Oakland’s first-round draft pick, who has been the favorite target of opposing quarterbacks, was beaten for a five-yard touchdown on an inside quick slant by Washington wide receiver Pierre Garcon late in the third quarter when the Redskins took their first lead.

Like he has most of the season, Hayden had decent coverage. But his inability to jam Garcon at the line of scrimmage made it an easy read for Washington quarterback Robert Griffin III.

“That’s another one of those learning experiences for him,” coach Dennis Allen said.

Rookie Rivera Gets into the End Zone

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Mychal Rivera has been Oakland’s most productive tight end through four games, and the rookie finally has a touchdown to show for it.

One play after quarterback Matt Flynn was nearly intercepted in the first quarter, Rivera hauled in an 18-yard touchdown pass that temporarily gave the Raiders a 14-0 lead.

Rivera later dropped a throw from Flynn just before halftime and finished with two catches for 44 yards. That gives the sixth-round draft pick nine receptions on the season, fourth on the team behind wide receivers Denarius Moore (15) and Rod Streater (13) and running back Rashad Jennings (11). Jennings caught eight passes in the loss to Washington.

Inexcusable Mistakes Haunt the Defense

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Oakland’s defense had Washington quarterback Robert Griffin III on the run for much of the first half and forced a fumble by the second-year pro midway through the third quarter.

The Raiders also made two costly mistakes that helped sustain a pair of scoring drives by the Redskins in the second half.

On a 2nd-and-6 play in the third quarter, defensive lineman Jack Crawford stopped Washington running back Alfred Morris for no gain, only to have it negated when rookie linebacker Sio Moore was called for being offsides.

The Redskins picked up the first down on their next play and then scored the go-ahead touchdown later in the drive when Griffin connected with Pierre Garcon on a five-yard slant.

Defensive end Lamarr Houston also lined up offsides in the fourth quarter, wiping out a turnover that would have given Oakland possession deep in Washington territory.

Coach Dennis Allen called the two plays “inexcusable.”

Offensive Line Has Trouble Adapting to Flynn

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Trying to block for a mobile quarterback like Terrelle Pryor is challenging enough. Doing it for an immobile quarterback like Matt Flynn is even more daunting.

Oakland’s offensive line had a tough time keeping Washington’s defense off Flynn, who repeatedly stayed in the pocket and held onto the ball for lengthy stretches of time, which allowed the Redskins to eventually break down the protection.

Washington’s seven sacks matched the total allowed by the Raiders through their first three games when Pryor was at quarterback.

Even though Flynn had taken the majority of reps in practice in the days leading up to the game, center Stefen Wisniewski said it was a definite adjustment after playing with Pryor.

Flynn was sacked on back-to-back plays late in the third quarter.

“They’re completely different in the way they move back there in the pocket,” Wisniewski said. “I think people probably rush them differently. We have to figure out what that looks like exactly. They definitely handle themselves back there differently. So we have to try to block differently. It’s tough to change at the drop of a hat, though.”

Receivers Held in Check for the Most Part

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Denarius Moore’s 23-yard reception on an underthrown pass by Matt Flynn helped set up Oakland’s only offensive touchdown in the first quarter.

After that, the Raiders wide receivers were kept mostly silent.

Part of it was because quarterback Matt Flynn was getting creamed in the backfield by Washington’s pass rush. The other reason was because the Redskins did a better job containing Moore and his fellow receivers, who were held to just seven catches for the game.

Flynn’s other 14 completions went to running backs or tight ends, including eight to backup running back Rashad Jennings.

Over the past two weeks, Moore and Streater have been heading in opposite directions. Moore has 10 catches in the last two games while Streater, who had 154 yards in receptions heading into the game, managed just two catches for 18 yards.

Pryor May Be Back in Week 5

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Oakland coach Dennis Allen decided to err on the side of caution when he opted to start Matt Flynn in favor of injured Terrelle Pryor, even though Pryor had passed all the NFL-required testing for concussions earlier in the week.

Allen stood by his decision Sunday after Flynn’s less-than-inspiring performance and said it was the right thing to do for Pryor’s health.

Pryor appeared fine, otherwise. He roamed the sidelines and twice ran onto the field when his emotions got the better of him. The second time, after linebacker Kevin Burnett’s fumble recovery in the third quarter, Pryor had to be physically pulled back by a pair of assistant coaches to avoid a penalty.

The hope in Oakland is that by resting Pryor this week, he’ll be available to start Sunday’s home game against AFC West rival San Diego.

Michael Wagaman is a feature columnist for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotations in this article were obtained firsthand.