Getty Josh Jacobs, Raiders
In the last two weeks, things have begun to turn around for Raiders running back Josh Jacobs. Thing is, he does not much care—in the end, the results were the same, to more Raiders losses.
As the disappointment within the team’s fan base has piled up, so has the frustration from Jacobs, the NFL’s leading rusher from a year ago. After a mistake-filled loss to Pittsburgh on national television in Week 3, the Raiders again were their own worst enemies in Week 4, losing on the road to the Chargers, 24-17, despite starting rookie quarterback Aidan O’Connell in place of Jimmy Garoppolo.
Jacobs has not sugarcoated his feelings about the Raiders’ letdowns in the past, but he was as outspoken as ever this week.
“For me, it’s frustrating, man,” Jacobs said in the locker room on Sunday. “Tired of losing. Just keeping on it. I’m tired of f***ing losing, man. And I mean, I feel like every day I go in there and work my ass off. So, eventually something’s got to give.”
Josh Jacobs: ‘We Did it to Ourselves’
What was frustrating Jacobs most of all was the Raiders’ penchant for self-sabotage. That was blatant in Week 4, when the Raiders were called for nine penalties worth 80 yards, including a blatant late hit from defensive lineman Jerry Tillery, who was ejected from the game. They also coughed up three turnovers in the game, and O’Connell took seven sacks.
The entire Chargers bench was ready to fight Jerry Tillery after this hit
“A lot of the stuff is on us. A lot of the stuff, we did to ourselves,” Jacobs said. “So, until we willing to look in the mirror and correct those things, it’s gonna keep happening.”
Even with O’Connell at the helm, the Raiders have too many veterans on hand to play the way they did Sunday—and the way they did in Week 3, for that matter.
“Stupid sh**, stupid sh** we do to ourselves,” Jacobs said. “It’s undisciplined, undisciplined football, and this league is too competitive. It’s too competitive and there’s too many guys that’s good out there to not do the little things right every play. Until we figure that out, this is going to be what it is.”
Jacobs Had Most Productive Day of 2023
There were some positives from Week 4. The mistakes by O’Connell were understandable, given his situation, and he did show that he could have an NFL future. Jacobs also had his best day of the season, with 58 yards rushing (on 17 carries) and 81 yards receiving (on eight catches).
Conventional wisdom would suggest that Jacobs would be somewhat happy that the Raiders, in each of the last two games, have had a chance to win (or, at least, to tie) at the end of the game, despite their many earlier mistakes.
But for Jacobs, the close calls at the end only magnify the frustration.
“No, that make it worse,” Jacobs said. “That make it worse because that just means, five or six plays, you do it right, that’s the difference in the outcome of the game. At the same time, I’m tired of saying, five or six plays is the difference in the outcome of the game. It’s time to do that sh**.
“We’re still in the games at the end. If we just do stuff right from start to finish, who knows where the game would have been?”