OAKLAND – The Raiders faced fourth-and-5 late in the fourth quarter. They trailed the Los Angeles Chargers by two touchdowns, desperately trying to mount a comeback and stop an extended losing streak.
Derek Carr took the shotgun snap and waited for running back Jalen Richard to fight through the defensive line and prepare for a throw. Pressure was bearing down, with Chargers defensive end Melvin Ingram in Carr’s face. Richard was blanketed the whole time.
The play, as designed, was dead. Carr threw it into the turf.
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One problem: A turnover on downs essentially locked in a loss. Raiders fans were up in arms over the decision to concede in that situation, hoping Carr could’ve improvised or thrown it up for the possibility of a conversion downfield.
That didn’t happen, and a fifth straight loss was secured. Chargers 20, Raiders 6.
The Raiders' offense, and the passing game in particular, has struggled mightily. The Silver and Black hasn't scored a touchdown in nine quarters. Frustration in the locker room and throughout the fan base is reaching critical mass.
Saying uncle on fourth-and-5 didn’t help matters much.
NFL
“We tried for a big play,” Raiders coach Jon Gruden said. “It was a play designed for man-to-man, we were trying to generate a pick for our half back. Give credit to [the Chargers], they made a great play. We were looking for a big play in that situation and the Chargers smothered it out. I take credit for that play call there. I have to see what happened. The play was designed for Jalen Richard, from where I was standing I wasn’t sure how much pressure there was. But, it looked like Melvin Ingram III was beating down on him. That was one play amongst others that cost us the game today.”
A play call in that situation with only one legitimate option can and will be questioned, as Gruden suggests, but it wasn’t the only one.
The Raiders also couldn’t score on fourth-and-goal from the 1 on their first series, using a jet sweep that failed to cross the goal line.
Oakland moved the ball well all day but couldn’t punch it in, going 0 for 3 in the red zone.
The turnover on downs was one of those offensive failures. The play was designed for Richard, and Carr said there were no other options besides the Raiders running back.
“No, not in that case,” Carr said. “There’s literally – it’s Jalen. The coverage they play and everything, the way we designed it – it’s Jalen. I wish there was something else I could have done. You know that. I don’t want to lose. Obviously, it sucks. We’ll talk about that this week. It’s really designed for Jalen and they covered it.”
Carr couldn’t wait any longer, not after Ingram spun around rookie offensive lineman Brandon Parker and bore down on the quarterback. It was either a sack or a throwaway at that point, with the primary option blanketed.
Carr didn’t believe he was in position to run for a first down with Ingram coming in hot.
“I would have definitely got sacked by No. 54, but I wish – absolutely, yes. We could have had something different to pick up that first down,” Carr said. “It hurt.”
NFL Network analyst David Carr, Derek’s oldest brother, defended Derek Carr’s decision in those waning moments.
"It's a screen, it's covered, throwing it at his feet is the only option," the elder Carr wrote on Twitter.
But fans on social media were upset about Carr throwing it away, and several media members -- including myself -- raised an eyebrow.
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