The Raiders beat the Jets in thrilling fashion on Sunday, but in the third quarter of the game, it appeared Las Vegas was on its way to a blowout victory against a winless club.
Las Vegas opened the second half with a long touchdown drive to pull ahead, 24-13, but the Raiders ran just six more plays in the period. They punted twice on two more possessions as the Jets shifted momentum, setting up New York’s near upset victory.
But despite poor production from the offense when the Raiders had an opportunity to pour on the points, coach Jon Gruden said he wasn’t calling conservative plays for quarterback Derek Carr at that crucial juncture in the game.
The coach was sure to point out the Raiders’ 13-play touchdown drive to open the third quarter. He also noted a play on the drive after that, which he said was a 2nd-and-4 miss to an open receiver in the flat.
“Derek normally doesn’t miss that,” Gruden continued, as he spoke to reporters on Monday. “So, the foot is not off the gas. We didn’t make a play there. Then on third-and-5 on the next possession, if anybody watched the game, the ball was batted down. We had a good look to Waller. Jets made some plays.”
Reviewing Gruden’s game notes, there was no 2nd-and-4 play in either of the three-and-out, third-quarter drives. There was a 2nd-and-8 play when Carr missed running back Devontae Booker, however. It was during the drive Gruden mentioned, and that must be what the coach was referring to.
There was indeed a 3rd-and-5 opportunity to Waller though. It was batted down by defensive tackle Folorunso Fatukasi on the second of the two failed drives. The rest of the plays were all hand-offs or passes to running backs, however, including a short pass to Theo Riddick on the other third down.
That’s why it appeared Gruden was letting off the gas, so to speak. And it’s a fair critique, to be sure. It felt like the right time to throw to speedy wide receivers Nelson Agholor and Henry Ruggs III. Or at the very least, keep feeding Waller — who was in the midst of a historic day — earlier in this group of plays. For what it’s worth, Waller did appear wide open on a play on the first failed drive in question, but Carr didn’t target him.
But the Raiders, whether correctly or incorrectly, throw to their wideouts less than almost every team in the NFL. So perhaps what Gruden considers to be keeping his foot steadily on the gas pedal, the rest of the NFL considers conservative.
And they might both be correct. Most importantly, Gruden acknowledges the opportunity missed against the Jets on Sunday to ensure victory for his team much earlier.
“We have to put people away if we get an opportunity like we did yesterday,” Gruden said Monday. “We didn’t do it, we let them back in the game. Fortunately for us, we got out of there with the win.”
The last four games for Las Vegas are bound to be tough as they battle for playoff position, starting next week when the Raiders welcome the Colts to Allegiant Stadium. If Gruden gets the chance to put a team away again, he’s got to make calls that yield better results for his squad, regardless of what type of play he draws up.
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