What key advice from an ex-coach does Raiders QB Derek Carr recall in tough times?
Derek Carr absorbed plenty of on-field knowledge while playing at Fresno State under coach Pat Hill.
But it’s a conversation about the mental side of the game, also dating to Carr’s Bulldogs playing days, that he tries to keep in mind whenever criticism is directed at him or his teammates.
Lately, critics have focused on a Las Vegas Raiders defense that ranked toward the bottom of the NFL in many statistical categories.
Hill, his protégé fondly remembers, taught Carr the value of circling the wagons.
“As long as you keep that fist closed, nothing can get in,” Carr said after the Raiders defeated the Cleveland Browns 16-6 on Sunday. “I love Pat Hill for that. It really showed me that no matter where the struggles are happening, you must stay closed and you must stay like a fist. When it happens and there is success that happens, it feels better. There is just more joy.”
And for a change, it was the Raiders defense that starred, holding Cleveland to 223 total yards — the fewest for a Raiders opponent since December 2017 — and not allowing a touchdown for the first time since December 2012.
The Raiders (4-3) ran for 208 yards as a team, and Carr had a hand in that.
He finished with six carries for 41 yards, although the Raiders also may want Carr to remember to slide more often. Two scrambles, in particular, Sunday seemed to put him seriously at risk, though he avoided harm each time.
“He loves those type of football games,” Carr said of coach Jon Gruden. “When he has his plays and is able to dial up all his cool stuff, where I can check things and throw for 300 yards, he loves that. But I really think he loves this more. The toughness, the grit, the attitude.
“I am sure Pat Hill will text me the same thing. His favorite play is power and the power running game. I am sure I will get a text from him about the power running game. I think those two are the same guy. They love grinding it out like this and playing great defense and running the ball at people. They love that stuff.”
Carr was 15-for-24 passing for 112 yards and one touchdown for a passer rating of 87.5.
Jacobs, rushing attack dominates
After last week’s game, Josh Jacobs said he was embarrassed following a career-low 17-yard rushing day in a 45-20 loss to Tampa Bay.
No need to feel badly against the Browns.
Jacobs had career highs of 31 carries and 128 yards, topping the 100-yard mark for the first time this season.
“I think it is about time we had a run game like that,” he said. “It just feels good to be that dominant.”
He became the first Raiders running back to record 30 rush attempts in a game since Darren McFadden had that many carries in December 2012.
Trent Brown on players mind
Raiders tackle Trent Brown was inactive after a fluke pregame incident.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero later reported Brown was hospitalized after a “mishap with his pregame IV that caused air to enter his bloodstream and required immediate medical attention.”
He will stay overnight in Cleveland.
He was slated to start at right tackle, Gruden said, but Sam Young was inserted into the lineup before he had to exit because of an injury. Brandon Parker then saw some playing time.
“We are just going to say that he got ill here in the locker room,” Gruden said.
Brown was on the players’ minds, safety Johnathan Abram said.
“That is one of my closest friends,” he said. “We talked about it pregame. We are going to go out there and get this ‘W’ for him today. I know the one thing is it sucks when you have a guy go down and you end up losing. So we made sure that we went out there today and got the ‘W’ for him.”
Brown missed last week’s game while on the reserve/COVID-19 list.
Big play by Joyner
Raiders safety Lamarcus Joyner made what might have been a critical, touchdown-preventing play.
Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield saw Jarvis Landry in the end zone and threw the football to him in the fourth quarter.
It appeared it would go for a TD — until Joyner jumped and deflected the pass.
“I am glad he has a good vertical,” Gruden said. “That was a touchdown. He got up and made a great play to deflect that pass. They were in an empty backfield set. We ran a three-man rush, and Joyner really timed that jump perfectly. Fortunately for us, he made that play.”
He said it
Jacobs described what he was thinking when he saw Carr running.
“Slide. That is what I am thinking.
“Please do not take a hit. He is comfortable, man. He has looked better every week. Just to see him comfortable and trust that when the play breaks down and he can use his feet, That has been huge.”
This story was originally published November 1, 2020 at 4:55 PM.
