Oakland Raiders vs. Cleveland Browns: First Home Game in Post Al Davis Era

Oakland, California

On a day when hearts were heavy and the Raiders lost their starting quarterback, the Raiders did what Al Davis would have wanted. They just won baby, defeating the Cleveland Browns 24-17.

Last Sunday’s game at Houston was an emotional win for the Oakland Raiders.

Today’s game against Cleveland was just as emotional.  There was definitely a different vibe before game time.  Raiders legends like Ted Hendricks and Henry Lawrence roamed the sideline in black with a sense of sadness to their stride.

Speaking of Henry Lawrence, he also had the honor of singing the National Anthem.

Starting quarterback Jason Campbell went down late in the second half.  The injury turned out to be a broken clavicle.

“We will not blink,” said Head Coach Hue Jackson on how the team will respond in the wake of Campbell’s injury.

Backup Kyle Boller took over for Campbell.  The backup had an uneven day at best—he was 8-14 with 100 yards.

Boller spoke on his situation.  “I felt like I got more comfortable as the game went on,” said Boller.

Sebastian Janikowski extended the Raiders lead to 10 with a little over three minutes to play in the third quarter with a 48-yard field goal.

The Raiders scored on their first drive of the day chewing up the clock with a 7:48 drive. The drive was capped off by a 4-yard touchdown run by Darren McFadden.

McFadden busted out of the shoot on the Raiders' first play on offense, with a run of 24 yards.

“Run DMC” finished the day with 91 yards on 20 carries with one touchdown.

The Browns tied the game in the second quarter on a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Alex Smith.

The Raiders wasted no time reclaiming the lead.  On the ensuing kickoff wide receiver Jacoby Ford took the ball out of his own end zone and returned it 101 yards, tight roping down the sideline for the touchdown, making it 14-7.

Sebastian Janikowski extended the Raiders' lead to 10 with a little over three minutes to play in the third quarter with a 48-yard field goal.

The Raiders would call on Janikowski again on their very next drive.  After a fumble by Colt McCoy that the Raiders recovered on Cleveland’s 25-yard-line, the Raiders drive stalled, setting up a 53-yard field goal attempt for Janikowski.  Coach Hue Jackson thought differently as he conjured up his inner riverboat gambler and called for a fake.  The play resulted in a 35-yard touchdown pass from Shane Lechler to tight end Kevin Boss.

Kicker Phil Dawson was able to get the Browns three points closer with 12:29 to play in the fourth with a 47-yard field goal, making it 24-10 Raiders.

Fans started to squirm in their seats when the Raiders went for it a 4th-and-1 with under five minutes to play on Cleveland’s 5-yard line and came up short.

Coach Jackson took full responsibility for the call on fourth down.  “I believe in my players,” said Jackson without hesitation.

The Browns were able to capitalize on the Raiders' misfortune, going 95 yards and scoring on a 12-yard TD pass from Colt McCoy to Mohamed Massaquoi.

The outcome was still in question after the Browns' touchdown, due to an onside kick recovery by the Browns on the Oakland 49-yard line with 29 seconds to play.

The Raiders defense was able to hold their water, with the Browns turning the ball over on downs to seal the deal for the silver and black.

Notes

Darrius Heyward-Bey continued his improvement by catching six passes for 82 yards.

Recently acquired Aaron Curry started at linebacker today instead of Quentin Groves.  The newest member of the Raiders recorded two tackles and assisted on another.

The Raiders out-gained the Browns in total yards 329 to 268.

Quotes for this article were taken first hand by Gean May at the Raiders' post game press conference in Oakland, California on 10/16/2011