For some reason, that was close! The Las Vegas Raiders snuck away with another win and are somehow serious players in the wild card race.
This Team Has an Accountability Issue
The penalties, the turnovers, even the off-the-field issues earlier in the season, all boil down to one thing: not being totally locked in. Mental errors shouldn’t happen this consistently and this late in the season. Most of the penalties weren’t that bad, but the Clelin Ferrell roughing call was a perfect example of a player knowing what not to do and doing it anyway. Yes, he got pushed down, but he chose to reach for Drew Lock’s legs. The fumbles were both egregious. Neither Josh Jacobs nor Derek Carr had a very tight grip on the ball. Both of those turnovers disrupted what appeared to be promising drives.
These issues come down to accountability. It’s clear that there isn’t a “Commitment to Excellence” right now. Perfection is not being demanded. This issue runs not just through the Raiders’ locker room, but extends to the coaching staff, and even to the highest levels of the organization. This is why the Raiders are just hanging on to beat Drew Lock and Nick Mullens. Everyone is okay with “just good enough.” Unfortunately, at some point, that won’t be enough and it could cost Vegas a playoff spot.
The Raiders have a Running Game?
I’m not ready to say this for sure just yet, but we saw a reason to be hopeful this week. Josh Jacobs had his best game of the season, and the offensive line did a great job of moving the Denver front seven. To be fair, the Broncos’ defense was worn down from a lack of offense. Also, they made it a point to defend the pass. We will see how the Raiders fair when the opposing team isn’t begging them to run the ball.
Complimentary Football?
With the emergence of the run game, we finally found some semblance of complimentary football. Still, complimentary football doesn’t involve several bad turnovers. For now, we’ll take just being able to sustain a drive with the run. Keeping the defensive line well rested will be huge next week against Jonathan Taylor and the Indianapolis Colts.
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*Top Photo: Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group