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The Las Vegas Raiders‘ home opener against the Arizona Cardinals was supposed to be a special day for Davante Adams. He spent half a million dollars on a suite for his family to watch the game, which is a big reason why he forced a trade to the team. Things got off to a great start as Adams scored the team’s first touchdown of the game.
Unfortunately for the star wide receiver, that would be the high point for him. He only caught one more pass throughout the game and finished with two catches for 12 yards. It was the first time he had less than three catches in a game since the 2017 season when the Green Bay Packers had to start backup quarterback Brett Hundley.
The Raiders ended up blowing a 20-point halftime lead and fell to the Cardinals in overtime. Adams decided to forego speaking to the media after the game so it’s difficult to know exactly how he felt about the historic loss. While he has yet to directly address the events of the game, the wide receiver did break his silence on Instagram. He posted a quote that said, “I tell myself everyday ‘stick to the plan everything gon fall in place.'”
Based on this quote, it doesn’t sound like Adams isn’t focusing too much on the loss and believes that the team will turn things around. Time will tell if that’s actually the case.
Josh McDaniels Says Cardinals Took Adams out of the Game
The Cardinals’ defense clearly wanted to keep Adams from breaking open the game. They were willing to let other players make plays but wanted to make sure the star wide receiver was in check. That didn’t work out in the first half as Darren Waller and Mack Hollins tore up the defense. Head coach Josh McDaniels said Arizona did a better job of making Adams a non-factor than the Los Angeles Chargers did last week.
“Look, at the end of the day, we have to be producing no matter what the defense is doing it; whether we’re running it or throwing it,” McDaniels said after the game. “They chose to take Davante [Adams] away a little bit more, certainly than last week, than the Chargers did. That forced the ball to some other people. You saw Mack [Hollins] had some success, and Hunter [Renfrow] and Darren [Waller] so the defense they get a vote whatever they choose to do, we got to be able to produce against it.”
Where Do the Raiders Go From Here?
The Raiders are 0-2 and in last place in the AFC West. This game against the Cardinals was very important to win as it was considered one of their easier games. Two of the Raiders’ next three games are against AFC West teams. If they lose both of those games, they will either be 1-4 or 0-5. That would pretty much kill any chances of making the playoffs this season in a loaded AFC.
Things aren’t getting easier as the Raiders head to Tennessee next week to face the Titans. They had the best record in the AFC last season so the team is in for another tough fight. Beating the Titans could certainly help turn the season around. They follow that up with a game against a Denver Broncos team that looks just as disappointing to start the season. Heading into Week 5 with a 2-2 record against the Kansas City Chiefs would make the team feel much better about their chances.
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