Raiders coaching: McDaniels steady, Graham struggling

Needless to say, the Raiders’ 1-4 start isn’t what anyone had in mind for the first year under Josh McDaniels. But as quarterback Derek Carr said, they have earned the record they have. That is the bottom line.

The question is, how much has coaching had to with the slow start?

Here are three observations.

A steady hand at the helm

While nobody could have foreseen the Raiders tied for the worst record in the NFL after five games, the steady manner in which Josh McDaniels has managed things has been admirable.

The positive, practical tone he is setting by focusing more on the process and improvement rather than panic and finger-pointing could eventually serve the Raiders well.

There is no sense that confidence is wavering within the Raiders’ locker room, or that their buy-in to what McDaniels is pushing is waning.

On the contrary, publicly and privately the Raiders are expressing confidence in the direction they are headed and the plan McDaniels has in place to get them there.

Much of this is predicated on the Raiders being fully prepared to compete over their first five games and possessing the necessary talent level to stand toe-to-toe with each opponent. That creates the sense that things will eventually get turned around and the Raiders can still make something out of the season.

Graham has lot to prove

The Raiders were said to have completed a bit of a coup by prying Patrick Graham away from the Giants to be their defensive coordinator. Not only was it the same position he held in New York, but with Graham on the cusp of becoming a head coach, it was believed the Raiders were reeling in a coaching star on the rise.

All of that might still be true, but to date, the defensive results have not lined up with the advance fanfare. The Raiders are surrendering the fourth-most points per game in the NFL — 26 ppg — and their inability to put together four quarters of solid football has been conspicuous.

In games in which the defense started slowly, it made the necessary adjustments to play much better in the second half. In games the defense started fast — the Cardinals and Chiefs games come to mind — it faltered in the second half to let wins slip through its hands.

Injuries have bee a factor, but Graham needs to figure out a way to get more consistent play from his group.

Sweating the details

The Raiders stressed efficiency throughout the spring and summer and put a high premium on avoiding self-inflicted wounds that contribute to losses. Learning how not to lose was just as important as learning how to win was the general thought.

That hasn’t necessarily carried over into the season, and it has cost the Raiders dearly. They are seventh in the NFL with 34 penalties, and there have been lapses in focus with some key dropped balls, poor tackling, and, as we saw Monday night, two wide receivers running into each other on a key fourth-down play to end the game.

At the end of the day, that falls on everyone from the players to the coaches. The Raiders clearly aren’t far off, but the coaching staff needs to do a better job getting more efficient play from the players, especially in key moments.

Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on Twitter.