Offensive woes have plagued the Raiders during their current four-game losing streak, which reached historic proportions after they fell to the Jaguars last Sunday. It was, in all likelihood, the final Raiders game at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.
Oakland led at halftime, 16-3, but didn’t score a single point in the second stanza. The Raiders watched as the Jaguars tallied 17 points themselves to wrestle the game away and stun the home crowd.
Significant anger was one result of the game, with quarterback Derek Carr leaving the field to a chorus of boos from a portion of the fans. But whether vocal or not, nobody left The Coliseum happy that day, except for the Jaguars.
Another result of the game is a report from The Athletic’s Michael Lombardi. The former NFL general manager, who worked with Raiders coach Jon Gruden during Gruden’s first stint as Oakland coach, says he doesn’t see the Raiders improving next season with Carr as QB because Carr and Gruden don’t see eye to eye.
There is a significant disconnect between the coach and the quarterback. Gruden and Carr will play nice; they will say all the positives about one another. Still, having been around Gruden for many of those good years in Oakland, I know what he loves in quarterbacks: the toughness, the grit, the willingness to sacrifice, and a competitive drive to match his own. Carr makes too many mistakes with the ball, and whether it’s a fair assessment of his ability or not, he never displays the fire that would remind anyone of former quarterback Rich Gannon. Too many times he refuses to hold on for one more second, knowing he might get hit before releasing the ball.
Lombardi does point out that Carr’s game has improved under Gruden. During the coach’s tenure, Carr’s average yards per attempt is 7.5, the best mark of his career, per Lombardi.
But this report was mostly critical of Carr. Lombardi notes Carr’s subpar ability to make off-script plays, which was another strong suit of Rich Gannon, the former Raiders MVP QB. It’s also a skill prevalent in the NFL today, with the likes of Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes among those leading the charge.
[Carr’s] not progressing when the play breaks down if Gruden’s play call is not perfect. He struggles to create big plays on his own. Usually the defense is at risk when a quarterback breaks the pocket. But when Carr leaves, the defense is never worried, as he is more likely to just throw the ball out of bounds than try to make a play.
That description brings to mind Carr’s throwaway late in the Raiders’ loss to the Titans two weeks ago when he broke free of the pocket but simply threw the ball out-of-bounds, though there was no risk save for a meaningless potential interception.
Lombardi goes on to predict Gruden will acquire another QB to challenge Carr, perhaps via a high draft pick. But a steady showing by Carr in the season’s last two weeks, or perhaps simply improved production in the second half of those games, could convince Gruden to continue building the roster around Carr, at least for the time being.
The needs of the club are numerous. Most notably, the wide receiver position needs attention, as does the front seven of the defense. Gruden might be wise to spend his draft picks there.
But as Lombardi points out, an ultra-competitive Gruden, with just a 10-20 record since he returned to the sideline, might feel he’s improved the roster enough already and be compelled to make a drastic change at his most important — and most scrutinized — position.
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