Raiders notebook: ‘Winnable game’ turns to lessons learned after costly mistakes
It was a sloppy day for the Las Vegas Raiders. Missed opportunities escaped the Raiders on Sunday in a 36-20 loss to the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium.
Just ask Raiders coach Jon Gruden.
“There are some issues that add up to a loss,” he said. “Proud of our team for fighting. I do like the effort, and looking forward to getting out of here and going back to Vegas.”
The Raiders (2-1) played with a lot of effort, but also had plenty of chances to go up by as many as two touchdowns, but missed out on them. Consider:
▪ The Raiders were marching down the field to the Patriots’ 12-yard line when running back Josh Jacobs fumbled early in the first quarter. The Patriots didn’t score on the next possession.
▪ Later in the quarter, right tackle Denzelle Good was called for a five-yard penalty that pushed the Raiders to third-and-7 at the New England 6-yard line. The Raiders settled for a field goal and a 3-0 lead.
▪ In the second quarter, quarterback Derek Carr fumbled at the Raiders’ 48-yard line. New England kicked a field goal that made it 3-3.
▪ In the third quarter, Daniel Carlson missed a 41-yard field goal. The Patriots capitalized on the missed field goal with a touchdown to make it 20-10.
It also didn’t help that the Patriots ran for 250 yards against a Raiders defense that ranks 24th against the run.
“We are trying to gel right now,” defensive end Maxx Crosby said. “We thought this was a really winnable game. We were in a good situation and we just didn’t come through. We just have to get better, there is no excuse.”
Even worse, the Raiders finished 3 of 9 (33%) on third-down efficiency.
That and other mistakes left a sour taste in Carr’s mouth.
“I mean situationally the game was frustrating,” Carr said. “I think obviously they won the turnover thing, and they won in those situations. It got away from us.”
Gruden will continue to be encouraged by his team after starting the season 2-0.
The Raiders will host the 3-0 Buffalo Bills at Allegiant Stadium next Sunday.
“I wasn’t perfect,” Gruden said. “I made plenty of mistakes, but I do like the team. I like the way they hustled; I like the way they finish. We just gotta play better in some key situations.”
Carr passes Lamonica
Carr, who completed 24 of 32 for 261 yards, finished with two touchdowns.
Those two touchdowns moved him past Daryle Lamonica for the second-most in franchise history with 149.
Next up for Carr is Ken Stabler, who has 150 touchdown passes.
Injuries keep piling up
Backup defensive tackle Daniel Ross left the game with a foot injury.
Rookie cornerback Damon Arnette aggravated his thumb injury, but he returned to the game, as did wide receiver Bryan Edwards (ankle), who was tackled awkwardly.
“We’re missing a lot of key players, and lost some more today,” Gruden said. “We gotta get a good-looking medical report, see who’s going to be able to play.”
Already injured were tackle Trent Brown (groin), wide receiver Henry Ruggs III (knee/hamstring), linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski and guard Richie Incognito (Achilles).
This story was originally published September 27, 2020 at 6:05 PM.
