2-10-OAK 14 (1:21) L.Murray left tackle to OAK 28 for 14 yards (S.Wright, E.Weddle).

General

Week 11 Opp SD Dn-Dist 2-10-OAK 14 Q 3 Time 1:21 Yards 14

GFYs

TV Main GFY A22 GFY EZ GFY EZ SLO GFY TV Replay 1 GFY Detail Gallery Detail Gallery

ISOs

OAK v SD GFY # 72 LT D.Penn v # 94 DE C.Liuget GFY # 69 LG K.Barnes GFY # 61 C S.Wisniewski v # 54 LB M.Ingram GFY # 77 RG A.Howard v # 92 NT R.Carrethers GFY # 71 RT M.Watson v # 91 DE K.Reyes GFY # 87 TE B.Leonhardt v # 96 LB J.Johnson GFY

General

6th round picks rarely get anything handed to them. They have to earn their roster spot, then earn their playing time, and then earn each start one by one. That's the road that Latavius Murray had to take, complicated further by (a) being injured his rookie year and (b) having two big name--but only slightly more expensive--veteran RBs ahead of him.

Murray lost his entire 2013 rookie season to a pre-season injury, so the coaching staff really had no firm grasp of what they had in Murray, which was why the team re-signed McFadden (to a team-friendly contract) and then went out to get Maurice Jones-Drew.

Murray's job was to work hard, keep improving, play on special teams, and then grab any carries during mop up time and show that he should get more relevant playing time. And he did.

2014 was Murray's 2nd year in the NFL, but first year playing, and so in the first 10 weeks of the season, his main job was on special teams (most notably as a kick returner). He had a grand total of 6 carries for 11 yards through Week 10; that's not going to turn any heads.

But it was in Week 11 against San Diego that Murray had a chance to play some meaningful snaps and he made the most of it, flashing some excitement in a running game that had been comatose throughout the year. While DMC and MJD combined for 12 carries and 27 yards, Latavius Murray came in and almost doubled that in one-third the carries. On his 4 carries, Lats had 43 yards (10.8 avg) including bursting out for 14 and 23 on his first two carries. On a day that looked like just another torpid Raiders' running attack, there was a sudden infusion of electricity and Raiders' fans everywhere took notice.

This is a look at his first carry and how that played out and why it was an impressive and important run for him.

Details

21 Personnel, 2 RBs (Murray and Reece) with the TE Brian Leonhardt, and two WRs, Brice Butler and Kenbrell Thompkins. Chargers are in Base 34.

The play is designed to open the Strong side B-gap with two lead blockers clearing the way for Murray. LG Khalif Barnes is pulling on the play and will be the first blocker while FB Marcel Reece will follow. If all goes to plan, there will be a hat-on-hat and a clearing that will let Murray run thru and get into the 2nd / 3rd level.

But things do not go according to plan.

The Chargers front is slanting hard to their right (offensive left) and there are two key matchups that favor SD in the initial engagement :

Menelik Watson v Kendell Reyes

Brian Leonhardt v Jarrett Johnson

Reyes beats Watson to the inside and has now stepped into the desired running lane; beaten so quickly, Watson can only try to wash Reyes onwards to the inside and hope that Leonhardt is able to create a gap to the outside.

Unfortunately, Jarrett Johnson beats Leonhardt as well.

These two matchups have created a problem in the middle of the line.

If there was an exposed hole in the line, the Chargers would have two LBs to fill, Donald Butler and Kavell Conner. The Raiders would be sending two blockers to meet them, so the battle would be

Barnes v Butler

Reece v Conner

to create space.

But Reyes and Johnson are now forcing the lead blockers to handle other duties and leaving the two LBs free to swarm to the ball carrier.

At the point of attack, the Raiders now have Brian Leonhardt, Khalif Barnes, and Marcel Reece ALL blocking Jarrett Johnson. That combined 800 lbs of Raiders manages to put Johnson on the ground, but using a triple team on a single LB is a major win for the SD defense.

As Latavius Murray approaches his hole, there are two free defenders and a totally clogged line.

The Chargers defensive front is swarming towards the target hole. On the backside, NT Carrethers is spinning out of RG Austin Howard's block; Carrethers is working back to the running lane also.

It's not hard to imagine the answer to "What Would DMC Do?" We've seen it before. He's see the LB filling the small hole, lower his head and shoulders, explode full-speed ahead, and smash into the Donald Butler for a gain of 2 yards. And that may be one reason the Chargers are so aggressive here; they are used to DMC's style.

But Latavius Murray is not DMC.

Here, Murray "presses the hole", meaning that he gives an attack impression as he approaches the lane. To the defenders, he is showing that he is going one way while preparing to cut away from it. The goal is to draw defenders in and open up outside cut lanes. In this case, Butler and Carrethers are key.

Murray gives a hard jab step and then breaks to his left.

Now the defenders have bunched up at the initial running lane. When Carrethers turns inside, it gives Austin Howard the outside leverage to seal him. The sets the edge for Murray's cutback lane.

The lone remaining containment defender is OLB Melvin Ingram. And C Stefen Wisniewski has stepped downfield to block him. This sets up a clean running lane if Murray can only get to it.

Ingram is in a little bit of a No Man's Land. POTENTIALLY, Murray has a two-way go, meaning that he could either run up inside that cleared lane OR he could plant hard and try to break to the outside. If Ingram overcommits in one direction, he risks leaving an area of the field wide open. But with Wisniewski there and Murray coming full speed, Ingram can't really afford to be passive either.

Murray makes one move--one hard step to the outside--and that gets Ingram to step upfield just enough. Ingram is attacking Murray's outside leg and that allows him to cut hard back up inside and into the hole.

It's just enough. Lats stays just out of Ingram's reach and gets downfield.

14 yards (and a first down) later, Murray is tackled.

Downfield / WR Blocking side note :

Brice Butler was the WR on the backside of this play and his responsibility is to block the CB #29 Craig Mager. Butler gives a decent effort to mirror Mager but a half-hearted one to actually engage him; Butler never gets his hands on the Chargers' CB nor does he make him work. As a result, that CB is able to fly in and get a part of the tackle. Without Magerin the play, Murray on Weddle with half a field open becomes a more interesting matchup for the Raiders.

Downfield blocking by the WRs may turn these nice plays into great plays. DHB in previous years would have made this block; Rod Streater may have made this block. If the Raiders are to continue to manage the running game, all players, including Brice Butler will have to make this play.

Finale

It's just one play. But it's an interesting one and gives some hope to the Raiders' faithful who have grown weary of seeing DMC repeatedly running into a wall of defenders. What Murray showed in this one play was the ability to draw defenders and then to break away from them. Once near a hole, he shows the ability hit it and to get upfield in a hurry.

That's something to be excited about. This coming season will be the first time since 2010 that the Raiders' Opening day Primary RB is not Darren McFadden. And we will see if Latavius Murray is able to live up to the demands of the position.