ALAMEDA, Calif. -- The Oakland Raiders held a coming-out party on national television the last time they played with a 30-20 thumping of the defending Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos.
Then came the bye week.
Now, the Raiders (7-2) are preparing for what they hope is another statement game, this time on an international stage on ESPN’s Monday Night Football in Mexico City against the Houston Texans (6-3).
The Raiders ramped up their self-scouting over the bye, as they have been doing since Week 1.
“We see what we’ve done over the last several games and how our opponents are going to look at us and see us,” said Raiders coach Jack Del Rio. “We want to correct mistakes right away and move on. You know when you make mistakes, when you put things on film that you struggle with, they’re going to come and try it and check you out to see if you fixed it.
“That’s part of what we do, but we don’t wait. We don’t wait for the bye week to do this.”
Here is Texans reporter Sarah Barshop, then, with a scouting report on three Houston players to watch on each side of the ball.
OFFENSE
QB Brock Osweiler: Osweiler is coming off his worst game of the season, throwing for just 99 yards. He completed 51.9 percent of his passes and averaged 3.67 yards per attempt, which is his second-worst performance this season. Though the Texans have leaned on their running game this season, Osweiler will likely need to play better on Monday night to beat the Raiders.
LT Duane Brown: Since he returned from a quad injury in Week 5, Brown has greatly improved the play of the offensive line, who struggled to protect Osweiler and get the run going to start the season. When Osweiler faced Oakland last season as a member of the Broncos, Khalil Mack sacked Osweiler five times in one game. Brown and the offensive line will certainly be focused on stopping Mack, who has seven sacks this season.
RB Lamar Miller: Miller is still dealing with an injured right shoulder that has not allowed the Texans to use him as they did early in the season. But even with the injury, he ran for 83 yards on 15 carries as part of a 181-yard team-rushing performance on Sunday against Jacksonville. He said his shoulder is improving, but it still hurts when he is hit in a game. He said he hopes to be back at full strength soon.
DEFENSE
ILB Brian Cushing: Though the Texans’ run defense struggled to start the season, they have shown better results over the past two games, allowing 58 rushing yards to the Lions in Week 8 and 80 to the Jaguars on Sunday. Texans head coach Bill O’Brien credited Cushing as a big reason for the improved play, saying, “Cushing has really controlled the middle. He’s played downhill football.” In his last game, Raiders running back Latavius Murray had one of the best games of his career, running for 114 yards and three touchdowns on 20 carries. Oakland will likely focus on establishing the run early against the Texans’ 26th-ranked run defense.
CB Johnathan Joseph: Houston is ranked third in the NFL in pass defense, allowing an average of 197 passing yards per game. Joseph will lead the unit tasked with stopping Oakland receiver Amari Cooper, who is on pace for a nearly 1,500-yard season. Last week against the Jaguars, No. 1 receiver Allen Robinson had nine catches for 107 yards and a touchdown, a line Joseph and the rest of the Texans’ secondary will look to avoid against Cooper.
OLB Whitney Mercilus: Mercilus leads the Texans with 4.5 sacks and Houston will need him to pressure Raiders quarterback Derek Carr to make him uncomfortable, because he hasn’t been this season. The Raiders’ offensive line is the best in the NFL at protecting the quarterback, allowing just 11 sacks in nine games this season.