Loser: QB Derek Carr
Derek Carr was the hype of the week after his performance against the Chiefs. He went toe to toe with one of the best quarterbacks in the league was all over the media with serious praise. Well, he was humbled by the Falcons with for sure his worst performance of the season.
Carr had 4 turnovers on the day with three fumbles and a pick-six. He was inaccurate for most of the day and didn’t get help from his receivers. While he did face a lot of pressure from his offensive line, He didn’t make the plays out of structure we have seen recently this season. It was just ugly overall by the quarterback.
We have seen these games before from Carr and should be expected every year. Hopefully, he got the dud out of his system, and the Raiders can get back into the playoff race and finish the season strong. The next couple of weeks will be huge for Carr’s outlook on the season.
Loser: HC Jon Gruden
When a team has a performance like this, we can blame the team all we want, but it’s usually on the coach. The Raiders did not look prepared when they stepped onto the field, especially the offense. Gruden has to have this team ready to play football.
The playcalling early on made no sense, with the Raiders playing scared in the first quarter. The Falcons were all over Gruden’s plays, and we’re not giving his quarterback many options to go with the football. Gruden predictability has been an issue for years as teams figure him out by the end of the year, and we saw it rear its head Sunday.
Gruden has to find ways to be more creative or switch up looks with play calls. On the Raiders’ second time in the red zone, I was able to call out the play before it happened. If I can do that, then for sure you know NFL teams are ready for everything Gruden throws at them.
Loser: RB Josh Jacobs
Jacobs season has been an interesting case of what actually makes a running back season great. Jacobs is on pace for double-digit touchdowns on the season but is only averaging 3.8 yards per carry on the year. It was another slow game for him Sunday, and he needs to get better down the stretch.
It started on the fourth and one on the game’s first drive, where Jacobs had a hole to the outside. He didn’t show burst to get there and tried to cut back, which led to a turnover on downs. We saw this the rest of the game where Jacobs just didn’t have the burst to see from him usually. He then finished it off with an ugly fumble to make the blowout even worse.
Jacobs might be hurt, and that would explain his performance. The Raiders need him down the stretch to help them sell these games. Jacobs has to get healthy, or they need to give Devonte Booker more looks in the run game if he can’t go. Let’s hope Jacobs bounces back next week.
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