OAKLAND, Calif. - Denver rookie Denver outgained the entire Oakland offense with seven receptions for 99 yards, including a 26-yard touchdown catch from Jay Cutler, and the Broncos took a 17-0 halftime lead over the Raiders on Monday night.Cutler went 12-of-18 for 202 yards while calmly directing the Broncos through an outstanding offensive half that included a five-minute march to open the game at the Coliseum.Michael Pittman rushed for a 3-yard score for the Broncos, who beat up a longtime rival early in their first game following their first losing season since 1999.
Royal, a second-round draft pick from Virginia Tech, looked thoroughly deserving of his starting job in a breakout first half for the Broncos, who didn't miss 102-catch receiver Brandon Marshall during his one-game suspension for violating the league's personal conduct code.
Royal even rushed two times for 9 yards, giving him 108 total yards — a good bit more than the 95 generated by JaMarcus Russell, rookie Darren McFadden and Oakland's inexperienced offense, which struggled to get into an early groove.
Even after all of Al Davis' offseason changes, the Raiders have been outscored 60-0 in their last 2 1/2 appearances in Monday night games. Oakland has five straight seasons of double-digit losses.
After both clubs posted sub-.500 records in 2007, Denver and Oakland were hoping for an early boost to their hopes to get back to contention in the AFC West. The clubs hadn't both endured simultaneous losing seasons since 1964, when they were in the AFL.
Raiders receiver Javon Walker was scratched with a strained hamstring, preventing the mercurial pass-catcher from taking on his former teammates. Walker missed much of last week's practices with the injury, forcing Johnnie Lee Higgins to start in his place.
Denver's offense marched 76 yards on its opening drive, finishing when Royal sneaked behind new Raiders safety Gibril Wilson for a catch in the corner of the end zone.
Oakland came right back with a 58-yard kickoff return by Higgins. McFadden, the No. 4 overall draft pick, broke an 8-yard run on the first NFL carry, and the Raiders reached the Denver 7 before Russell fumbled while getting hit on third down.
Russell slapped his helmet in anger running off the field. He went 5-of-8 for 47 yards in the first half, while Justin Fargas had 10 carries for 40 yards.
Cutler later connected on a 72-yard pass to backup tight end Tony Scheffler, who slipped behind linebacker Kirk Morrison and rambled 20 yards after the catch before falling at the Oakland 4. Denver then lost 4 yards before Matt Prater's 26-yard field goal early in the second quarter.
Denver then moved 57 yards with three more passes to Royal on a drive capped by Pittman's 3-yard TD run 4:21 before halftime.
The Raiders' struggles were encapsulated when they nearly pulled off a clever reverse end-around in the second quarter — but Higgins bobbled the pitch with empty field in front of him before picking it up and getting run out of bounds for a 15-yard loss.
by news.yahoo.com
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