Editor: Joe Bryant. Game Recap Contributors: Mike Anderson, Michael Brown, Chris Burtt, J.D. Caldwell, David Dodds, Jim Enochs, Joel Faulhaber, Michael Flynn, Kevin Goldblum, Clayton Gray, Bob Harris, Fred Hebert, Jesse Hilsenrad, Drew Kendall, Jeff Lewis, Joey Matusek, Justin Oliver, Steve Prosapio, David Shick, Cody Smith, Scott Smith, Jeffrey Stout. Oakland 30 at Pittsburgh 17 WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW Oakland Raiders: The Raiders threw the ball all night with success. Gannon was very accurate and he picked apart the Steelers linebackers and secondary, mainly on short passes. He looked very good and his 43 completions are second all time in the NFL. Jerry Rice, Tim Brown, and Jerry Porter were all very busy in this game. Jerry Rice was the number one target on the most plays, and he was open all night in the middle of the field. He seems to be pushing Tim Brown as the Raiders number one receiving target. Jerry Porter was used on a number of deep patterns, and Brown was used on routes all over the field. Tight end Roland Williams was also involved as Gannon spread the ball around. Charlie Garner is the number one option out of the backfield for the Raiders. He was very elusive and even drew comparisons to Barry Sanders from the announcers. He definitely made the most of his opportunities in this game even though the Raiders game plan was primary to attack by passing. Pittsburgh Steelers: Kordell Stewart struggled throughout the game with the exception of a few good series. Stewart was forcing his passes, and was booed as he left the field in the third quarter by the home crowd. The Steelers offense did not operate efficiently with Stewart at the helm. RBs Jerome Bettis and Amos Zereoue together only had 13 carries (10 for Bettis and 3 for Zereoue). Neither back was able to get anything going, in part as a result of the few carries and short time of possession for the Steelers. Though Bettis received the bulk of the carries, this situation should be followed closely as Zereoue could steal more carries. Hines Ward seemed to make his case for the number one receiver in Pittsburgh. He was the primary receiving target throughout the night and Plaxico Burress was not as involved in the game plan. Antwaan Randle El was involved as a receiver and kick returner, and he also lined up at quarterback for a draw play. Randle El can burn and should continue to get looks in the offense. Between the Patriot game in week 1 and Sunday Night's 64 pass marathon, it's obvious that the rest of the league feels the way to beat Pittsburgh is through the air. Linebacker Joey Porter looked terrific and was the sole bright spot on a Steelers defense that was picked apart all night by Gannon. Porter finished the evening with two sacks and two interceptions one that was almost returned for a Steelers touchdown. WHAT YOU OUGHT TO KNOW Oakland Raiders QB: Rich Gannon - The Raiders came out running the no-huddle offense, taking a page out of the Patriots play book from last week. Gannon threw ten straight passes to open the game, and completed his first six passes. At the end of the first half, Gannon had thrown an amazing 41 passes. On one long pass, Gannon was intercepted in the middle of the field on a pass he probably shouldn't have thrown. Outside of the interception, Gannon was very accurate throughout the game. He finished the game completing an awesome 43 passes for 403 yards. WR: Jerry Rice had five catches on the first series of the game and was seemingly open every time the Raiders stretched out the Steelers defense. Simply put, the Steelers defense couldn't cover Rice as he picked apart the middle of the field. For this game, Rice was clearly the favorite target of QB Rich Gannon. Rice was targeted in the end zone on two straight plays before an interception in the late third quarter. Tim Brown continued to see balls thrown his way, but was less involved than Rice. He looked fine on the field, but Gannon spread the ball around quite a bit. Jerry Porter left the game after Lee Flowers stuck him hard on a short reception in the first quarter. He returned in the second quarter. Porter was the recipient of a number of targets down the field, and continues to be used on deep pass routes. Porter was very involved in the offense. RB: Charlie Garner lined up at WR on the first play from scrimmage. He was the recipient of a swing pass deep in the red zone on the Raiders first offensive series but was stopped short. Garner made the most of his few early carries and looked great on his 36 yard TD run on his second run from scrimmage. His 34-yard reception in the third quarter was unbelievable and even drew comparisons to Barry Sanders from the announcers. When given the opportunity, Garner looked very good. Garner is the number one option out of the backfield. Tyrone Wheatley was not involved in the offense at all in the first half, and the announcers made no mention of him. He came into the game late in the late fourth quarter. Zack Crockett also played sparingly and was used on third and short in the late second quarter. Terry Kirby received more carries than Wheatley and Crockett combined. TE: Roland Williams was involved in the Raiders passing game from the start, and made a nice stretch for a first down in the first quarter. He was one of many options used by Gannon. K: Sebastian Janikowski kicked a perfect FG from the 41-yard line on the Raiders' first series of the game, and hooked a 45-yard field goal through in the third quarter. He missed a 46-yard kick in the fourth. He finished the game three for four. Raiders Pass Defense: Cornerback Charles Woodson could have had a couple of interceptions early in the game, and probably would have had one if Burress didn't play defense. Woodson was all over the Steelers receivers with great coverage. His interception came on the last play of the game on a desperation throw by Stewart. Overall, the Raiders pass defense looked good, put sufficient pressure on Stewart, and forced some bad throws. Rod Woodson was in the right place at the right time, and recovered three fumbles during the game. Raiders Rush Defense: The Raiders rush defense looked good. They held Bettis and Zereoue to few yards and never gave up the big play. Though the Raiders start nine new faces on defense this year, they have come together nicely early in the season. /**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/**/** Pittsburgh Steelers QB: Kordell Stewart looked more comfortable early in the game and was on target, going 5-5 on his first drive. Hines Ward was wide open on the touchdown pass in the first quarter, and Stewart hit him in stride. Stewart had a couple of throws almost intercepted on passes he forced in the early second quarter, and he fumbled the snap for a turnover on the Raiders four yard line. Stewart continued to struggle throughout the rest of game, and was booed at one point by fans in the second half. He did make a nice pass for his second touchdown by faking the run and then throwing the ball in a spot that only Ward could catch it. Overall, though, Stewart struggled mightily throughout this game except for a couple of good series. WR: Plaxico Burress wasn't very involved early in the game, but did draw pass interference in the end zone in the middle of the second quarter on a long pass. He was targeted on another long pass early in the third. He had a long reception called back because of holding in the early fourth quarter. Burress was held to only one catch in the game and he fumbled on that play to seal the loss. In this game, Burress was used as the long option on a number of plays, but clearly was not the number one target as Ward seemed to fill that role. Hines Ward made a circus catch on third and short in the first quarter that was challenged and upheld. Ward was wide open on his touchdown pass later in the series. He continued to receive more looks from Stewart than any other WR throughout the game and Ward appears to be making his bid for the number one WR job in Pittsburgh. Antwaan Randle El - Stewart found Randle El on a slant pattern in the first and he looked very fast and elusive. He also looked great returning kicks and lined up in the shotgun for a quarterback draw. Randle El continued to stay involved in the game in a number of different ways. He looks to be a danger from anywhere on the field. RB: Jerome Bettis was involved in the Steelers offensive game plan early in the game, likely as an attempt to take pressure off of Stewart. As a result of the Raiders ball control and the flow of the game, Bettis didn't get many carries. He looked fine and ran downfield with his chances, but continued to share time with Zereoue throughout the game. Bettis finished with only ten carries. Amos Zereoue came in as the third down back on the Steelers first series and also spelled Bettis throughout the game. Zereoue was in during the fourth quarter and had a costly fumble with about seven minutes left in the game. Though he only had three carries, he played a fair amount. Keep a close eye on this situation and how the carries will be split. Chris Fuamata-Ma'afala checked into the game a couple of times, but was not involved in the game plan in any meaningful way. He did, however, block a punt that led to a Peterson field goal as time ran out in the first half. TE: Mark Bruener was used primary as a blocker throughout this game. Steelers Pass Defense: The Raiders were able to exploit the Steelers pass defense by spreading them out and throwing short passes. Early in the game, the Steelers were unable to get pressure on the quarterback when they rushed only three players in the 3-4 set. In the second quarter, the Steelers started to get more pressure on Gannon and blitzed more often. The second half saw the Raiders continue to pick apart the Steelers' defense and it is clear opposing teams will continue to throw the ball until they prove they can stop it. On the bright side, Joey Porter was a human highlight reel for the Steelers with three sacks and two interceptions. His second interception came at the Steelers' goal line and he returned it 85 yards into the Raiders red zone. Steelers Rush Defense: LB Kendrell Bell did not play and rookie Larry Foote played in his place as expected. As a result of the Raiders game plan, the Steelers looked surprised when the Raiders ran the ball. The rush defense wasn't particularly effective, but was not as exposed because of the infrequent Raiders runs.