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This week’s decision to bench Derek Carr as starting quarterback was met with a lot of pushback from fans and people in the media. While Carr has done a lot for the Las Vegas Raiders over the years, it’s harder to question the decision to bench him after Sunday’s game against the San Francisco 49ers. Despite the fact that the team lost 37-34, the offense looked sharp under new starting quarterback Jarrett Stidham.
Stidham was making his first career start against the NFL’s No. 1 defense but it didn’t look like it. He was in control of the offense throughout and threw for 365 passing yards with three touchdowns. However, he did throw two interceptions, including one in overtime that lost the game. Stidham wasn’t perfect but he was much better than even the most optimistic Raider fan could’ve hoped for. Wide receiver Davante Adams had his best game in weeks and he had a lot of thoughts about the young quarterback.
“Jarrett shocked a lot of people but he didn’t shock me,” Adams said after the game. “Anytime you see like that with not much experience, you never really know exactly how it’s gonna go but I know the way he prepares for everything single game. … He took control of the huddle, took control of the game and played an amazing game today. He apologized when we brought the team up for not being able to finish it off. I think every single person on the team said, ‘man, get out of here with that. You balled out, you did your thing.'”
Adams also noted that the team had a lot of fun on Sunday, which is good news considering the circumstances surrounding Carr’s benching.
“Jarrett shocked a lot of people but he didn’t shock me.”
– Davante Adams
Raiders Lose Another 10-Point Lead
The Raiders’ offense clicked on Sunday against an elite defense but their defense is still a mess. The 49ers were mostly able to score at will and the defense showcased some horrific tackling. The unit was looking stronger in recent weeks but they couldn’t overcome the losses of Chandler Jones and Denzel Perryman.
While some of the team’s recent losses could be put on the offense, the defense is at fault for the 49ers loss. When an offense scores 34 points, they’ve done enough to win. Regardless, the Raiders have set a record that no team wants this season. Following the blown 24-14 lead the team had in the fourth quarter, Las Vegas now has five blown double-digit second-half leads this season. That is more than any team in NFL history.
Tonight was the #Raiders‘ 5th loss this season in which they had a double-digit 2nd-half lead.
Per Elias, that is now the most in a single-season by any team all-time.
Playoff Dreams Are Officially Dead
The stars appeared to be aligning for the Raiders on Sunday. The Miami Dolphins and New York Jets both lost their games, which is what Las Vegas needed to stay alive. However, they also needed to beat San Francisco. For a moment, it looked like they were going to pull it off and go into Week 18 with some playoff hopes.
Instead, the Raiders have officially been eliminated. At this point, many had given up on the notion the team could make the playoffs so it’s not too much of a gut punch. That said, it would’ve helped redeem this disappointing season if the Raiders could’ve found themselves in the playoff hunt one more time.
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Raiders’ Davante Adams Has Strong Words for Jarrett Stidham