ALAMEDA -- It was a massive play, not just in the context of the game, but for what Jon Gruden has been wanting to see from Derek Carr.
With less than three minutes left Sunday, the Raiders called a zone-read, hoping to pick up the first down and drain the clock down to the two-minute warning against the Jaguars. Carr pulled the ball and sprinted right. The quarterback found his lane, ran decisively, picked up the first down and slid inbounds, firing the ball in celebration, believing he had secured a win in the Raiders' final game in Oakland.
The breakthrough ended up being for naught, of course, as the officials ruled Carr gave himself up too late and was therefore out of bounds, giving the Jags extra time to get the ball back and mount a comeback to win 20-16. The NFL reviewed the play and issued an apology to the Raiders on Monday.
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None of that matters to Carr or his head coach, though.
"No, gosh no," Carr said when asked Wednesday if it mattered the league apologized. "It means absolutely nothing. We got -- like I said, I like to keep my money in my pocket. But to decide the outcome of a football game it's a little different."
Gruden voiced his frustrations with the missed call Monday after receiving the apology from the NFL. That call, however, led to the Raiders suffering an ugly collapse that marred their final game at the Coliseum, an outcome that hit Gruden hard.
The fact that a call like that was missed, still leaves Gruden gobsmacked.
NFL
"It's the most ridiculous call that I've been associated with," Gruden said Wednesday. "You know, we have to take accountability managing the clock, for crying out loud. We got four downs and we got a clock and we got a clock operator and we got all this technology -- but yeah, it was a breakthrough play [for Carr] in some ways."
The loss not only saddled the Raiders with a loss in their final game at the Coliseum, but also kept them from climbing back to .500 and snapping a losing streak that has seen them drop out of playoff contention.
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At 6-8, the Raiders now must win their final two games to finish a once-promising season on a high note. But that missed call against the Jaguars is one that will sting Gruden and Carr long after the team has moved to Las Vegas.