A weird game ended up being a brutal, brutal defeat for the Las Vegas Raiders.
In the end, the Raiders left Allegiant Stadium stunned after a 25-24 loss to the underwhelming Chicago Bears after a 54-yard field goal attempt by Daniel Carlson was blocked in the final seconds.
The Raiders seemed in control of this game late despite commiting four turnovers in their own territory.
The Raiders’ defense played well until late, keeping the Bears young, but explosive offense quiet until it really counted.
New
Raiders’ quarterback Geno Smith was awful again and it ruined a breakout game by rookie running back Ashton Jeanty.
The bottom line is the Raiders have not been good in the first quarter of the season as they have lost three straight games and are 1-3. The Pete Carroll era, so far, was been sloppy and uninspiring.
Oh, and standout left tackle Kolton Miller was carted off on the final drive and Carroll said he has a sprain ankle. thus, he may miss some time.
Again, a brutal day for the Silver and Black. Here are some key aspects of the game:
Jeanty stance change pays off:
Raiders rookie running back Ashton Jeanty went back to his college stance of standing up after Kelly had him adjust to the normal NFL stance. And guess what he had a huge day. Jeanty had three touchdowns (one rushing, two receiving) and had his first 100-yard rushing game with 138 yards on 21 carries, including a nifty 64-yard touchdown run. The Raiders had 240 rushing yards. Perhaps things are coming around in this area. The Bears, of course, have a bottom five run defense. So, let’s see if the Raiders can continue to trend forward in this area.
Geno picked off three times:
While the ground game was zipping, Smith was intercepted three times (all in Raiders’ territory). He has thrown seven interception in four games and leads the NFL. By contrast, awful Gardner Minshew had five interceptions in the first five games last season. Smith has been intercepted six times in two home games this season. He had four interceptions in the first four games last season for Seattle and was picked off 15 times for the season. It’s been a big problem. To his credit, Smith has acknowledged he hasn’t delivered. “The guy I’m supposed to be hasn’t shown up year,” he said after the game.
Tip drills:
The Raiders’ defensive front played well early and had five tipped passes on the Bears’ first three possessions, capped by Maxx Crosby’s first career interception on his own tipped ball. Crosby tipped three passes for the second time in his career. Crosby had an incredible game. He is so special.
Some good things lost:
The Raiders did some good things. Their run defense was improved after getting gutted at Washington alst week. The Bears struggled to run the ball until late. They also bottled up quarterback Caleb Williams until late in the game. The Raiders offensive line was also better as it run blocked and didn’t allow any sacks. So, these are all positives.
Big special teams blunder again:
Last week, the Raiders’ special teams coverage contributed to the loss by allowing a 90-yard punt return for a touchdown and a 69-yard kick return to start the game. This week, it was a blocked field goal to seal the loss. Special teams coach Tom McMahom has shoring up to do.
Great defense:
The Bears got the ball inside the Raiders’ 25-yard line on three turnovers in the first half and have just six points. The Raiders have seven tackles for loss in the first half. It’s their most in 16 years.
What was that?
The Raiders went for it on fourth and 1 deep in their own territory and it was badly blown up as Jeanty was hit and fumbled and the Bears recovered the ball inside the Raiders’ 20.. Come on, Chip Kelly, that was bad.
Nice start:
For the third time in four games, the Las Vegas defense forced a three-and-out to start the game.
JPJ starts:
In a non-surprise move, the Raiders inserted second-year player Jackson Powers-Johnson in the starting lineup at right guard. He missed Week 2 with a concussion and he was a backup to Alex Capp at Washington because he wasn’t quite ready to play.
Another fan takeover:
About half of Allegiant Stadium was filled with Bears fans. That wasn’t the case with Chargers fans in Wee 2. So, the long-running issue with visiting fans taking over Allegiant Stadium is continuing. It likely will happen again against teams such as Dallas, Cleveland and Kansas City.
Mostert up, White down:
The was some movement behind Jeanty on the Raider’s depth chart. Free-agent addition Raheem Mostert was active for the first time and Zamir White was inactive for the first time. Mostert had a big 38-yard run in the fourth quarter and had 62 yards on four carries. Expect him to be active next week again. White has 25 yards on 10 carries this season.
Rookie active for first time:
Sixth-round pick, defensive tackle J.J. Pegues was active for the first time this season. He took the place of Kei Fotu, who was a a healthy inactive. Fourth-round pick, defensive tackle, Tonka Hemingway, remained inactive.
