Surprises can be pleasant or unpleasant. Following the defeat to the Jacksonville Jaguars, there were hardly any pleasant developments in the case of the Las Vegas Raiders. These three storylines that emerged from the Jaguars game were the biggest surprises.
Raiders K Daniel Carlson’s historic streak
Even if the Raiders are terrible, Carlson is perhaps the best kicker in the league. Since Carlson hasn’t missed a field goal this season, he is as automatic as a kicker can be. Carlson had an impressive streak of 39 made field goals going into the Jaguars game.
After making both of his day’s field goals, Carlson’s run of successful field goals increased to 41. Carlson is currently three field goals away from tying Adam Vinatieri’s record of 44 consecutive made field goals. One of the few bright spots in a miserable Raiders season is Carlson. From George Blanda to Sebastian Janikowski, the Raiders have always had illustrious kickers, and now Carlson will continue that tradition.
No. Daniel Carlson and AJ Cole have been great. They are not an issue. https://t.co/Nq6cuF3IY4
— Josh Dubow (@JoshDubowAP) November 8, 2022
Davante Adams was once again involved early and oftenÂ
Josh McDaniels, the coach, frequently overlooks the fact that he has a fantastic receiver, which has limited Adams’ impact as a Raider. Adams was involved early and frequently after McDaniels finally listened to the football gods.
Adams had a commanding first-half performance against the Jaguars, finishing with 146 yards on nine grabs and two touchdowns. Early on, McDaniels was feeding Adams and seeing success, but as soon as he turned away from him in the second half, the Raiders’ offense was shut down. Despite the historic first half start, Adams finished with the same numbers as McDaniels went away from him.
The Raiders’ record might be different if Adams had been involved like he was in the first half of the offense throughout every game. There is no reason why he shouldn’t be the center of the offense every week since you traded for him and made him the second-highest paid receiver in the league.
15 for 15 on Goal to Go Drives
Although the Raiders’ defense has been subpar overall, their performance in the red zone is even worse. Coming into the game, opposing offenses were perfect in goal-to-go situations against the Raiders defense. The Jaguars made matters worse and continued this trend. Josh Dubow of the Associated Press reports that the Raiders defense allowed 15 touchdowns in goal-to-go scenarios following the game and that they have allowed 36 touchdowns in 37 goal-to-go situations dating back to last year. There can be no justification for the Raiders’ defensive play; something needs to change. We were aware of the red zone defense’s shortcomings, but not to this extent.
*Top Photo: Daniel Shirey/Getty Images