As the old saying goes, football is a game of inches. The Las Vegas Raiders realized that painful truth in a 30-29 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium Monday night.
After the game, critics questioned head coach Josh McDaniels’ decision to go for a two-point conversion on the Raiders’ last scoring drive.
Running back Josh Jacobs had another top-notch performance, racking up 193 scrimmage yards (154 rushing and 39 receiving) with a touchdown, but he came within inches of a two-point conversion that would’ve propelled Vegas to a 31-30 lead.
With 4:27 left in regulation, McDaniels clearly didn’t trust a defense that allowed touchdowns on three out of four second-half drives, so he put the onus on his offense, which moved the ball at a whopping 6.8 yards per play. Even though Vegas would’ve needed a stop anyway, the back-and-forth nature of the game makes McDaniels’ call for two a reasonable one.
During the postgame press conference, McDaniels hinted that he became concerned about the defense, and you can tell by his answer that he wanted to rely on the side of the ball that performed better in the second half.
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Josh McDaniels explains two-point conversion attempt
“I felt like in that situation, they had a lot of momentum offensively obviously in the second half. I know it was four-and-a-half or whatever the time was but our team felt good about it and just felt that was the right call at the right time.”
Las Vegas Raiders’ Josh McDaniels
Again, Jacobs had a strong outing, rushing for 7.3 yards per carry. McDaniels’ faith in him to reach the end zone for two points isn’t an unfathomable decision. The Raiders had more confidence that they can close out the game with an offensive score than a defensive stop, which says a lot about how badly Patrick Graham’s unit played in the second half.
Quarterback Derek Carr didn’t have any issue with the move to go for two points, and he explained his reason to reporters after the game.
“It’s hard, frustrating and all those things, but I love going for two in that situation, especially on the road. We took the lead, they took the lead, we’re going to try to take the lead again to win it. I’m all for it.”
Las Vegas Raiders’ Derek Carr on two-point attempt
Let’s remember that hindsight is always 20/20. If Jacobs kept his body off the ground for a few more steps, the Raiders may have walked away with a 31-30 win. In that scenario, most people would’ve praised McDaniels for having the guts to make a season-altering decision that toppled the reigning AFC West champions.
Instead, McDaniels drew criticism because the call didn’t work out in the Raiders’ favor—a matter of inches even when it comes to perception.
Despite the failed two-point conversion, the Raiders had to a chance to get into field-goal range for Daniel Carlson, who’s yet to miss a field goal (12-of-12) and made his longest kick from 55 yards out this season.
On the final drive of the game, Carr tossed a pass to wide receiver Davante Adams, who didn’t get his left foot down for a toe-tapping 15-yard gain that would’ve set up the offense at the Chiefs’ 39-yard line.
Once again, a game of inches.
On the final play of the contest, Adams and Hunter Renfrow ran into each other, and Carr’s final heave hit the ground.
A few inches, a toe or a questionable defensive holding (no call) on Malcolm Koonce could’ve swayed the final result in the Raiders’ favor, but in the end, Vegas failed to play at an optimal level for 60 minutes, which is something the team has struggled to do thus far this season.
Aside from their 32-23 win over the Denver Broncos, the Raiders have looked completely different between halves. Whether it’s going up 20-0 against the Arizona Cardinals and falling apart in the second half or starting slow in matchups with the Los Angeles Chargers and Tennessee Titans before late surges, the Silver and Black has struggled to play complete games on both sides of the ball.
Regardless of your thoughts on the two-point attempt, late-game judgment calls on penalties or Adams’ inability to drag his left foot in bounds, the Raiders squandered another three-possession lead. Between the end of the second quarter through the third quarter, the Chiefs scored 17 unanswered points. Tight end Travis Kelce scored all four of Kansas City’s touchdowns.
Yes, the same Kelce who’s feasted on the Raiders defense for years scored all of his touchdowns within eight yards of the end zone. Graham didn’t have an answer for him in the red zone.
By the way, Vegas’ tackling worsened as the game progressed, which is partially why the Chiefs moved the ball in chunks after halftime. For the game, the Raiders committed 11 penalties, which cost them 99 yards.
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Las Vegas Raiders look ahead after latest loss
In a game of inches, the Raiders will need to do the little things right to win close contests. They must cut down on penalties, match a good half with another good half and make the necessary adjustments to sustain early momentum.
After a Week 6 bye, the Silver and Black will play in six consecutive matchups against teams at or below .500 in win percentage—no world-beaters on the schedule through November. While it sounds delusional, the Raiders still have an opportunity to go on a midseason run and climb back into the playoff picture.
Over the past couple of weeks, McDaniels has found balance in his offense with Jacobs, and we finally saw what the pass rush should look like with edge-rusher Chandler Jones generating consistent pressure opposite of Maxx Crosby Monday night.
The Raiders have the playmakers to turn this season around, and they’ve shown what they can do at their best for at least 30-40 minutes in every game this season. During the bye week, McDaniels, his coaching staff and the players must come together to figure out how to start and finish strong because one good half here and one good quarter there won’t serve them well against playoff-caliber teams.
Maurice Moton covers the Raiders for Sportsnaut. You can follow him on Twitter at @MoeMoton.