Bill Williamson is the site manager of Silver and Black Pride. He has covered the NFL since 1996 and he has covered the Raiders since 2008.

The Las Vegas Raiders are not a good football team.

That was the hope going into this season in the first full year under Antonio Pierce, who the players wanted and who promised a more consistent, stable product.

But the Raiders, the only team under .500 in the AFC West, are a bitterly disappointing 2-5 as they lost their third straight game Sunday in a 20-15 loss at the Los Angeles Rams.

The Raiders aren't just bad, they look like one of the worst teams in the league. This is a team that has trailed by double digits in all seven games and have been beaten by bad teams such as the 1-6 Carolina Panthers and the 2-5 Rams.

The Raiders just aren't competitive and that points squarely on Pierce.

Gardner Minshew replaced Aidan O'Connell late in the first quarter after O'Connell reportedly broke his thumb. Minshew, replaced two weeks ago as the starter, was awful. He threw three interceptions and lost a fumble. He has 10 turnovers this season, which is tied for the most in the league. He has eight interceptions this season. He had a a career-high nine interceptions in 13 starts last seoans with Indianapolis. After the game, Minshew said his turnovers are "unacceptable" and "not fair" to the team. He cost the Raiders in this game and the will likely be stuck with Minshew for the immediate future.

Quarterbacks needed?

If O'Connell is going to miss extensive time, the Raiders will likely elevate Carter Bradley from the practice squad. They could also add a free agent, but there's no much out there. They could pursue a player like Ryan Tannehill or Max Duggan, who was with Las Vegas general manager Tom Telesco with the Chargers.

More questionable coaching decisions:

Pierce, who is 7-9 as the Raiders' coach, has struggled with decision making this season. It happened again Sunday. He decided to kick a field goal while down eight near the goal line late in the game and then he burned several seconds around the two-minute warning.

Can't find the end zone:

In addition to the turnovers, the Raiders stalled near the end zone. All they could muster was five Daniel Carlson field goals.

Rams tried to help:

Make no mistake; the Raiders lost to a bad team Sunday. The Rams have no offense and their kicker missed an extra point and short field goal late to keep the Raiders in sniffing distance.

Defense does job:

The Raiders' defense had a solid outing. They made some big stops and kept the offense in the game. The Raiders' offense just couldn't get the job done.

Receivers quiet:

The Raiders were without Jakobi Meyers and are, of course, are in the post- Davante Adams world. The Raiders completed five passes to receivers as Tre Tucker had three catches and DJ Turner had two. They hope to get Meyers back soon.

Penalties an issue:

The Raiders had 10 penalties for 80 yards. This team was playing clean early in the season, but penalties have been an issue for a few games.

Mattison starts:

Even though, Zamir White was healthy after missing two games, veteran Alexander Mattison got the start for the third straight game. Mattson had 92 yards rushing on 23 carries ad White had just three carries. The Raiders will likely go with the hot hand week-to-week at tailback.

Glaze starts:

Rookie D.J. Glaze remained the starting right tackle for the Raiders even though Thayer Munford was healthy after missing three games. The Raiders have been pleased with the way the third-round pick from Maryland has played this season and it seems like is the new starter.

Bowers sets rookie mark:

Raiders tight end Brock Bowers had 10 catches for 93 yards. He he 47 catches on the season. He has set the Raiders' mark for the most catches by a rookie after seven games. Wide receiver Amari Cooper had 38 catches through seven games in 2015. Bowers is on pace to set the rookie record for catches by a rookie right end. Sam LaPorta of the Detroit Lions had 86 catches last season, He is the first rookie tight end to have three straight games of having, at least, eight catches.

Five D-linemen to start:

The Raiders started the game for the second straight game with five defensive linemen in the post-Christian Wilkins life. They have defensive ends Maxx Crosby and Charles Snowden and defensive tackles Adam Butler, John Jenkins and rookie Jonah Laulu. It was his first start. The Raiders used the alignments to start alst week's game with Matthew Butler being the fifth lineman.

More Maxx:

Maxx Crosby had another sack and he has 6.5 on the season He is third on the Raiders' all-time sack list with58.6 in less than six full seasons.

Big stop:

The Rams went for it on fourth and 1 at the 49 in the second quarter. Raiders' cornerback Nate Hobbs made the stop to give the Raiders the ball. But the Raiders didn't take advantage and went three and out.

Nice start:

Sunday was the 14th team since the start of alst season that the Raiders forced an opponent to punt on their opening drive. It's tied for the third most in the league, according to the Raiders' PR team, in that span.

Getsy on the move:

Raiders' offensive coordinator Luke Getsy called the game from press box Sunday. He was on the field the first six games. Pierce said earlier in the week he was considering making the move.