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Once again, the Las Vegas Raiders have pulled off an upset. The bad weather in Cleveland was the talk of the week and it’s no secret that quarterback Derek Carr hasn’t had his best games when it’s cold out. While he didn’t light up the stat sheet, Carr played a solid game en route to a win over a good Browns team.
A surprising twist is that Carr made a number of plays with his legs. Much has been made about he doesn’t like to run but he had some big plays on the ground. The Raiders will be happy to see their quarterback making plays but they didn’t love seeing him not slide on a couple of plays. Head coach Jon Gruden put Carr on blast for not sliding a couple of times.
“I say, are you out of your mind?” Gruden said of Carr not sliding on some plays after the game. “Don’t get carried away but he’s a great competitor. I’m just proud he’s finding all kinds of ways to move the team. We’ve had receivers come and go, we’ve had linemen come and go, but he’s hung in there and he’s finding ways to move the team.”
Fortunately, Carr didn’t get hurt at all and the Raiders won. If he keeps making plays like that, it’s a good sign for the team.
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Josh Jacobs Chimes In
Josh Jacobs was a major reason the Raiders were able to win. He had his first 100-yard rushing game of the season but Carr’s rushing was the focus after the game. Jacobs revealed what’s going in his mind when he sees the quarterback take off.
“Slide. Slide. Please don’t take a hit,” Jacobs said.
We’ve already seen examples this season of quarterbacks getting injured when rushing. Obviously, Carr needs to be careful but he knows what he’s doing. Having him run more clearly worked out well for the team. He’s just got to make sure he’s not taking hits.
Gruden Reveals Raiders’ ‘Secret Sauce’
Carr didn’t have his most statistically impressive game on Sunday but he found a way to win in less than ideal conditions. The Raiders were on their third-string right tackle and the weather was not forgiving. Gruden may have not loved Carr taking hits but he does believe that the quarterback’s runs “were the secret sauce in the win.”
Out of the team’s four wins, three of them have come against winning teams. The schedule gets a lot easier from here so there is real momentum for Las Vegas. The defense deserves a lot of credit for the win, as well. For the first time this season, they didn’t give up a single touchdown. Now, they got a lot of breaks this week but that doesn’t take away from a solid effort. The Raiders have proven once again that they are serious contenders to sneak into the playoffs this year.
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