The Las Vegas Raiders are on a quest for respect in the 2020 NFL season. Well, at least that is what Colid Cowherd of The Herd believes.
Fandom aside, anyone who has followed this team for the better part of this past generation knows about the struggles the Raiders have gone through. Yes, the Silver and Black were in the Super Bowl back in 2002 but other than that? Not much to show except for a coaching carousel, wasted draft picks, and overall dysfunction. As Cowherd pointed out, there was the 2016 season but that was more fluke and luck than anything else. It has only been in the past three years that the Raiders have slowly come back to life, Raider Nation can attest that it has not been easy.
Despite early struggles by the current administration, the Raiders are coming back to relevance amid the COVID-19 pandemic no less. The recent victories by the team, particularly against the Kansas City Chiefs, are proof that head coach Jon Gruden is steering the ship in the right direction, at least on the field. The current mishandling or lack of accountability with their players due to Covid aside, football results speak for themselves.
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“If the Raiders beat Brady and the Bucs, we’re gonna have to take them serious”
Wins are what matter in the NFL and more importantly, that’s what makes you relevant. For the Raiders, as Cowherd recognized, their recent wins have done just that. Defeating a future Hall of Famer in Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints was no cakewalk. The victory against the NFL’s defending champions has really moved along the conversation.
“They got a cool new stadium, an iconic coach, a ton of offensive weapons, and a GM that appears to know what he’s doing”
As always, when it comes to discussions surrounding the Raiders, the elephant in the room is quarterback Derek Carr. So far, Carr has kept his critics at bay with his precise play on the field this season. While Cowherd believes a win against the Bucs could be big for the Silver and Black, he noted that Carr is the “12th best quarterback in the league.” This statement is a whole other topic, but what is curious that after pointing out Carr’s numbers since 2019, Cowherd has hitched his wagon to the Raiders so to speak, Carr in particular. This comes after publicly lambasting the Raiders in the past, so fans should prepare for the national media to start “taking the Raiders serious” if they come away with a win today.
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*Top Photo: Jonathan Dyer/USA Today