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OAKLAND, Calif. -- The third week of the preseason is the dress rehearsal for the regular season, but both the Oakland Raiders and Tennessee Titans had to be mindful that they face each other so soon in the regular season -- Week 3 in Nashville. Meaning they did not want to show TOO much to each other. But did the Raiders starting defense need to fool the Titans into thinking they could not tackle? I kid. Kinda, because for the third straight week Oakland’s first-team defense had a hard time getting off the field, resulting in a 27-14 loss to the Titans. QB depth chart: Derek Carr was especially on point with deep balls. He dropped a couple of beauties in tight coverage -- a 41-yarder down the right sideline in the first quarter to Michael Crabtree and a 29-yard touchdown to Amari Cooper in the second quarter in the middle of the end zone. Carr was 12-of-18 for 169 yards and two touchdowns, while Matt McGloin, who replaced Carr midseries early in the third quarter, was 9-of-14 for 94 yards. Connor Cook was 3-of-6 for 51 yards with an interception on a tipped ball. Maybe that player could start: Not that this would necessarily be a good thing, but Nate Allen has the pedigree -- he has started 72 of the 79 games in which he has played in his NFL career -- and stepped in for the injured Reggie Nelson at free safety. Allen had six total tackles, but his big gaffe was prematurely celebrating a whiffed Sean Smith interception on the first series of the game, only to watch Tajae Sharpe break off a 60-yard catch and run to the Raiders' 4-yard line. Meh.  Who got hurt? Besides Nelson sitting, which was not a surprise, linebacker Neiron Ball did not dress, which was somewhat surprising. Tight end Gabe Holmes (ankle) and defensive end Mario Edwards Jr. (hip) both sat, as did fullback Marcel Reece, though he was not listed as being inactive before the game. Linebacker Bruce Irvin appeared to hurt his left hand in the third quarter. And undrafted free-agent receiver Johnny Holton, a dark-horse candidate to make the team, limped off the field after being hit on a 22-yard reception on the right sideline late in the fourth quarter.
A surprise player who impressed: The Raiders' mighty mites, 5-foot-8 rookie running backs DeAndre Washington and Jalen Richard, announced their presence by getting snaps with the first-team offense. Washington had a 6-yard TD catch to go with his game-high 55 yards rushing on eight carries, while Richard returned a kickoff 38 yards and had seven rushes for 35 yards. Washington did lose a fumble when he was blasted on a reception after being hung out by McGloin. Richard added two catches for 7 yards. When it was starters vs. starters, the Raiders looked ...: Sharp on offense, pushed around on defense. Because while Carr was clicking on his long passes and slant throws, hitting receivers in stride, the first-string defense had trouble with Marcus Mariota, who was 9-of-16 for 170 yards. In fact, in four first-half series, the Raiders defense gave up, in order: a touchdown, a field goal, another field goal and a touchdown. One reason to be concerned: The defense. Again. The first-team defense gave up a long drive for a field goal in the preseason opener at the Arizona Cardinals, a 74-yard drive in eight plays for a TD at the Green Bay Packers and, against the Titans, an 81-yard TD drive on six plays. At times, it appeared as though the starting defense -- which was missing Nelson at free safety -- was tentative, playing reactionary rather than setting the tone. And maybe that has been the case the entire preseason. Roster push? While Washington and Richard might push Latavius Murray for third-down touches should they both make the 53-man roster, should Taiwan Jones be more worried about losing his roster spot to one of these two? Both were returning kicks and getting reps at running back ... things Jones is supposed to do, right? Then again, with Reece serving a suspension the first three weeks of the season, perhaps the Raiders can wait on a decision. Well, it is the preseason, after all: The Raiders faced a fourth-and-2 from the Titans' 8-yard line with 10 seconds remaining in the first half and they ... went for it, as they should. It's the preseason and, while Carr sailed his throw out of the end zone and the Raiders turned the ball over on downs, it was absolutely the right call in that situation. Regular season? Kick the field goal. Besides, Carr had tight end Clive Walford open in the middle of the end zone one play earlier but just overthrew him.
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