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ALAMEDA – It’s been so long since the Raiders’ run game looked this good that even quarterback Derek Carr catches himself admiring the work of his linemen and running backs.

“I love handing that ball off and all of the sudden you just see them going,” Carr said. “I hope we run for 40 touchdowns. As long as we’re winning and moving the ball, I’m good with it.”

A rushing attack that finished 29th last season is now the second-best in the NFL, averaging 161 yards per game. In addition to a bolstered backfield, the acquisition of left guard Kelechi Osemele, who signed a five-year, $58.5 million deal in the offseason, is proving to be worth every penny.

Osemele graded out as Pro Football Focus’ top performer at left guard during Week 1 of the season, notably setting a vicious block on Saints linebacker Craig Robertson (while playing left tackle) that allowed rookie Jalen Richard to run for a 75-yard touchdown. The 6-foot-5, 330-pound mauler is currently ranked as the fifth-best guard in the NFL overall and has the sixth-highest run blocking grade in the league.

“I don’t even want to see him get hurried. … It’d be like protecting the president.”

Much of Oakland’s success in becoming the best run blocking team in the NFL, allowing its backs to average 6.13 yards per carry, can be traced back to Osemele. Sixty-seven percent of the Raiders’ rushes on third and fourth down in short yardage situations have resulted in first downs, while only 13 percent of the Raiders’ runs have been stuffed in the first two weeks, according to analytics website Football Outsiders.

Osemele has also made Carr’s safety his personal mission. Through the first two games, the Raiders line hasn’t given up a sack. That’s a trend the left guard wants to continue after Carr was brought down 31 times in 2015.

“I don’t even want to see him get hurried,” Osemele said. “That’s kind of how we measure ourselves. It’s like protecting your leader. It’d be like protecting the president.”

Osemele earned his reputation as one of the nastiest, most-feared offensive linemen in the NFL long before he arrived in Oakland. Like his ability to seamlessly transition from the zone-blocking scheme he ran with the Ravens to the Raiders’ gap and power-oriented attack, his line mates gradually started adapting Osemele’s attitude.

“Kelechi is super physical,” Carr said. “It’s not just him, it’s everybody. I turn the film on and watch the game, there’s pancake after pancake.

“He’s the perfect mentality because all our guys have that nasty, fiercer, strong mentality when we get in that huddle on game day. When he came in, it was a perfect fit.”

Added Osemele: “I’m pretty reckless. I’m going to play anyways, even if I get hurt this season. I’m going to go in there and give you everything I have. Some guys aren’t about that at all so they want no part of that.”

The left guard saw that up close in Week 2.

On a short run by Latavius Murray in the third quarter vs. Atlanta, Falcons linebacker Sean Weatherspoon had a choice to make: experience the raw, brute force of Osemele or get out of the way.

Weatherspoon opted for the safer route, jumping out of Osemele’s path while Murray scurried past the line of scrimmage.

“I talked to him (Weatherspoon) a little bit about that during the play and he was like, ‘It ain’t nothing, man, it ain’t nothing,’” Osemele said with a laugh. “That was pretty funny. He’s a business-oriented type guy, so he made a business decision on that play.”

Follow Courtney Cronin on Twitter @CourtneyRCronin.