Moss sees action, Woodson breaks leg in victory

By Anthony Carroll  |   Thursday, October 27, 2005  |  Comments( 0 )

Oakland Raiders
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With the "Randy ratio" eradicated by injuries, the Oakland Raiders turned to LaMont Jordan to make big plays against the Buffalo Bills. And that he did.

The Oakland Raiders did everything right Sunday, trampling the Bills 38-17 for their second victory of the season. LaMont Jordan ran with authority for four quarters, compiling 122 yards on 28 carries and three touchdowns. On the other side, Buffalo running back Willis McGahee found no rhythm on the ground, gaining just 50 yards on 16 carries. In the passing game, Kerry Collins looked sharp completed 19 of 27 passes for 261 yards and a touchdown.

Coming into Sunday's game doubtful, Randy Moss put bruised ribs, a strained groin, and a bruised pelvic area behind him - catching three balls for 43 yards and the Raiders first of five touchdowns on the evening. Along with Moss, Oakland attacked the NFL's top-ranked pass defense with third-year wideout Doug Gabriel. Gabriel was on the receiving end of 101 yards, while Jerry Porter had 43 yards and LaMont Jordan had 40 yards. For Buffalo, Eric Moulds and Willis McGahee led the team in receiving, with just 36 yards each.

Oakland's secondary was hit with two huge injuries on Sunday - cornerback Charles Woodson broke his right leg and strong safety Derrick Gibson dislocated his left wrist. Head coach Norv Turner indicated after the game that both starters could be out from anywhere to six to eight weeks. Despite facing both injuries fairly early in the game, the Oakland defense held Buffalo to just seven second-half points. Oakland is likely to turn to three rookies to fill the new holes in the Oakland secondary-Fabian Washington, Stanford Routt, and Chris Carr. Norv Turner may also have to turn to special teams workhorse Jarrod Cooper to fill in for Derrick Gibson at safety.

In an interview following the game, Lamont Jordan stated: "Those are the runs I've been waiting for all year. It means a lot to me. I'm a competitor." At the expense of Buffalo, Jordan showed just how much of a competitor he really is - keeping Oakland's season afloat for yet another week.

The Oakland Raiders travel to Tennessee next week to meet the Titans (2-5).
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About Anthony Carroll

Anthony Carroll began writing for RealFootball365.com on Sept. 26, 2005, making him one of the longest tenured contributors to the “365” team. As a senior writer, Anthony has taken on the task of delivering original content to the silver and black faithful year round, despite having to deal...
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