Preseason is upon us and FINALLY we get to watch some Raiders football – or at least some mutant, watered down form of it. However, preseason can lend itself to many a viewer/analyst pitfall if one doesn’t really know what to look for. While it’s easy to get caught up in silly things like wins, passer rating, sacks, etc., more often than not those are the things which matter least.
This early in the season the team is intentionally experimenting with assignments, personnel groupings, and (super basic) play-calling. While this experimentation isn’t particularly conducive to immediate victory, it gives the coaches an idea about player strengths and weaknesses so that they may better construct the team and scheme for the length of the season.