The Raiders' clear offensive problem can no longer be ignored
For long stretches, the blame for this season fell on the shoulders of Las Vegas Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels. But Saturday night's 13-10 loss to the Steelers can't fall at his feet. The blame solely belongs to the Raiders' erratic quarterback Derek Carr. He threw three interceptions to his one touchdown, and his last […]
For long stretches, the blame for this season fell on the shoulders of Las Vegas Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels.
But Saturday night's 13-10 loss to the Steelers can't fall at his feet. The blame solely belongs to the Raiders' erratic quarterback Derek Carr. He threw three interceptions to his one touchdown, and his last interception of the evening doomed the Raiders and their faithful to watching a disappointing season falter as low and lifeless as it started a few months back.
Carr, who has looked like a star and a scrub depending on the game, looked like the latter against Pittsburgh.
He threw for 174 yards on 16-for-30 attempts. He also possessed a disappointing 42.2 QBR. In short, Carr was awful. And each of his three interceptions was a self-inflicted wound on a season where he has struggled to lead a team talented enough to make a deep run.
Where things went wrong
The most brutal interception came on the Raiders' final drive. Needing to get into field goal range to tie the game, Carr dropped back to pass, and when the ball landed, it was in the hands of the Steelers' defense.
This interception was the icing on the terrible cake that was Carr's performance. The other two picks came in the third quarter — both on egregious overthrows by Carr.
Take a look at Carr's throw on this interception:
Awful.
Saturday summarized exactly why Carr has been the real issue for the Raiders. His inconsistent play has only hamstrung the Raiders' offense. And when Josh Jacobs isn't humming, as he has been in recent weeks, the Raiders look dead in the water.
After dropping the game, the Raiders are watching a season that has been nothing but a disappointment, finally putting itself to bed.
As the saying goes — maybe next year.
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Feature image via Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
