Oakland Raiders Falling To 0-5 Shows They Still Need To Learn How To Finish

By Kevin Saito @Kevin_Saito on October 12, 2014

The effort was there. The heart was there. But in the end, it just wasn’t enough.

Derek Carr and the Oakland Raiders made Tony Sparano‘s head coaching debut exciting by standing toe to toe and trading blows with Philip Rivers and the AFC West-leading San Diego Chargers. It was a close game and one that provided chills and thrills for everybody watching until the final moments.

But in the end, the Raiders — as they have so many times over the course of their now 11-game losing streak — came up on the short end of the stick. Despite having a load of veterans with championship hardware, the Raiders have yet to learn how to finish a game.

For the first time this season, though, the Raiders looked like a well-prepared team. They looked ready to go like they had a solid game plan and it showed in their effort against their division rival. For much of the game, the Raiders had the Chargers on their heels and had a touchdown lead with less than 10 minutes left in the ballgame. But the Raiders, without any tangible experience playing with a lead this season, let the game slip away.

For most of the day, the defense — which has been a real problem for the Raiders this season — did a relatively good job of containing the run, putting pressure on Rivers and holding the high-powered San Diego offense in check. That is, until late in the game when it mattered most. Playing with a touchdown lead, the Raiders gave up a field goal to the Chargers with just under six minutes to go and then the go-ahead touchdown about five minutes later.

The Raiders defense, which had been relatively solid for much of the day, absolutely folded in crunch time and allowed Rivers to march his team down the field for scores not once, but twice. The second of those cost Oakland the ballgame.

Sunday wasn’t all doom and gloom for Oakland, though.

There are some very big positives they will be able to take away from the loss. For one thing, Carr transformed before our very eyes on Sunday. He went from promising rookie with a lot of upside to legit NFL quarterback. Facing one of the NFL‘s best defenses, Carr was calm, confident and spent much of Sunday afternoon carving up that vaunted San Diego defense. Despite the fact that he threw a last-minute interception along the sideline to seal the Raiders’ defeat, Carr put up some excellent numbers against San Diego, finishing the game 18-of-34 for 282 yards to go along with his four touchdowns and that one interception. Carr finished the game with a very impressive QB rating of 107.7.

And for the first time this season, the Raiders fielded a legitimate rushing attack. A team that had come in averaging less than 62 yards a game rushed for more than 100 yards against a San Diego defense that ranked near the top of the league in yards allowed. Darren McFadden had 26 carries for 101 yards, and Maurice Jones-Drew added 30 yards on four carries. The Raiders’ backs did a nice job finding the holes and showed an excellent burst in getting through them.

If there was one negative about today’s offensive performance by Oakland, it was the fact that the receivers are still having trouble holding on to the ball. Carr’s stats would have been even better had the receivers, led by Andre Holmes‘ three drops, done a better job of catching the football. That is one area that simply must improve and improve quickly.

Despite the fact that the Raiders now stand at 0-5 after being defeated 31-28 by the Chargers, there are quite a few positives for the team to take away from the game; and in a season such as this, sometimes the small, moral victories are all a team has left to collect.

The Raiders’ effort was there, and they played with genuine heart and zeal for the first time this season. But in the end, it comes down to knowing how to finish, and the Raiders still haven’t learned how to do that.

Kevin Saito is a fiction writer, sports junkie, history nerd, and NFL contributor to www.RantSports.com  Follow him on Twitter, Facebook, or on Google