It would be unwise to assume the Raiders have hit rock bottom. Teams can always go lower. But Sunday felt pretty close, with Las Vegas losing 25-20 to a Colts team that had hired an interim coach with no experience past high school and started a quarterback who was earlier in the year.
That isn’t to say Jeff Saturday and Matt Ryan aren’t up to their jobs, but there’s no denying it doesn’t reflect well on the team they beat in their first game together. The Raiders, who entered this year with lofty expectations behind new coach Josh McDaniels and premier wide receiver Davante Adams, have dropped to 2-7, worst in the AFC West.
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Frustrations are clearly starting to boil over.
Quarterback Derek Carr was especially emotional after the loss. He appeared to be both sad and angry about the result.
“I love Josh (McDaniels),” Carr began. “I love our coaches. They’ve had nothing but success. Way more success than I’ve ever had. I’m sorry.”
Carr trailed off at that point. When a reporter tried to interject, Carr gathered himself.
“To finish that . . . I’m sorry for being emotional. I’m just pissed off,” he said. “About some of the things that a lot of us try and do just to practice. What we put our bodies through just to sleep at night. And for that to be the result of all that effort. Pisses me off. Pisses a lot of guys off.”
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Carr followed that up with a message to players who aren’t as committed as others.
“And I wish everybody in that room felt the same way about this place,” he said. “And as a leader that pisses me off, if I’m being honest.”
#Raiders QB Derek Carr got really emotional in his postgame press conference talking about how tough this season has been. pic.twitter.com/QxpX8HyOjW
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 14, 2022
Unsurprisingly, Carr didn’t name names.
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Carr wasn’t alone in venting. Star pass-rusher Maxx Crosby tweeted a simple message to fans: “Y’all Don’t Deserve This. Raider Nation I Love Y’all.”
Y’all Don’t Deserve This. Raider Nation I Love Y’all🖤
— 🦅MaddMaxx🦅 (@CrosbyMaxx) November 14, 2022
Crosby had a sack, his seventh of the season, and 10 total tackles Sunday. It was his first game with double-digit tackles since Week 1.
The 2022 campaign is the latest in a string of disappointing seasons for the Raiders. They lost in the wild-card round last season after missing the playoffs the previous four years. They’ve made two playoff appearances since losing to the Buccaneers in the 2003 Super Bowl. Carr is in his ninth season with the team and is 59-77 as a starter. He has played for five different head coaches.
With that in mind, it’s hard to blame him for being emotional. But the team’s struggles don’t seem to be lessening any time soon. Next week, they’ll be facing the AFC West-rival Broncos, who at 3-6 have also underperformed. That will be a battle to avoid last place in the division.
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