Silver And Black Pride
The Las Vegas Raiders have played 10 games under Pete Carroll and they are not getting better.
In fact, they are getting worse.
It wasn’t fired special teams coach Tom McMahon’s fault. It isn’t that they are just a few tweaks from winning close games.
They are lousy across the board and Monday night’s home game was another glaring example of it in a 33-16 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. Dallas, which improved to 4-5-1 with the win, totally dominated Las Vegas in every phase.
Things were so bad the Cowboys took a knee with two and half minutes to go. That is rare. Of course, this is the second time it has happened this season as Kansas City did it last month.
Carroll pointed out several times before the season he is used to win double-digit games in a season. If the 2-8 Raiders win their final seven games this season, they will fail to win 10 games this season. They are one loss or one Denver Broncos win from being eliminated in the AFC West and it’s 10 days before Thanksgiving.
The Raiders have lost five games by double digits and four by, at least, 17 points. This team is not competing.
This was another listless performance by Las Vegas in front of another dominant visiting-team crowd at Allegiant Stadium. Part owner Tom Brady was in the house for this one and he couldn’t have been pleased.
The Raiders are going nowhere fast with Carroll, offensive coordinator Chip Kelly and quarterback Geno Smith all sticking out as glaring problems who probably shouldn’t be brought back in 2026.
Let’s look at some key aspects of the game:
Abandoned the run:
Kelly threw the run game out the window very early. Smith dropped back to play 32 times and the Raiders had three planed runs in the first half. That’s incredible. In the end, Las Vegas had 42 passes and 12 runs. Ashton Jeanty, the No. 6 overall pick, had seven yards on six rush attempts. The Cowboys entered this game allowing 143 yards rushing a game and the Raiders didn’t try to run the ball. What is Kelly doing?
Bad night for pass defense:
A week after allowing 10 points to a Denver offense that struggled, the Raiders’ def was exposed badly be a strong passing offense Dak Prescott threw for four touchdowns and Dallas wide receivers CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens tied with the Raiders’ defensive backs. The Raiders defense has allowed, 30 or more points in five games and in three of the past four games.
Big debut for Quinnen Williams:
Dallas defensive tackle Quinnen Williams had 1.5 sacks and seven pressures in his first game since being traded from the New York Jets. Williams dominated the Raiders. Next the Raiders’ battered offensive line has to deal with Cleveland superstar pass-rusher Myles Garrett, who has 10 sacks in his past three games.
Draft-pick game:
The Raiders host the Cleveland Browns on Sunday in a game featuring two...
