Oakland Raiders not mature or good enough yet, and that’s okay
The Oakland Raiders have been lopsided losers in two straight games and now must face a somewhat disappointing but also uplifting reality.
After a brutal road trip, much was made of the young Oakland Raiders‘ resilience while winning their next three games. They were 6-4 after 11 weeks and were only a game behind the division-leading Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC West. The success was unexpected, to say the least, given their previous season and offseason.
There were the Khalil Mack and Amari Cooper trades, Antonio Brown’s ballyhoo and Hard Knocks to draw in many critics, jokes and things of the like. Despite that, head coach Jon Gruden and general manager Mike Mayock built a winning team that was fun to watch.
All of a sudden, an even more unexpected 34-9 drubbing at the hands of the New York Jets followed by an even worse 40-9 loss against the Chiefs has brought the Raiders crashing down to Earth. These were two games that the Raiders just simply did not show up, despite being crucial for their postseason hopes.
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It’s now become obvious that this Oakland Raiders team simply isn’t mature or good enough — at least not yet. That is completely fine.
While the Raiders still may squeak into the playoffs — after all, they’re only a game behind the Pittsburgh Steelers for the No. 6 seed in the AFC as a Wild Card team — it’s hard to picture them making a Super Bowl run. Going forward though, the Raiders are built for profound success when they enter Las Vegas.
The aforementioned Gruden and Mayock have formed a tremendous young nucleus to build around. Almost the Raiders’ entire 2019 draft class has made an impact. First-round pick Clelin Ferrell has 3.5 sacks, while fellow first-rounder running back Josh Jacobs is a potential Rookie of the Year winner.
Safety Johnathan Abram was injured opening night against the Denver Broncos and lost for the season. But his style of play would make Jack Tatum and George Atkinson smile and should be a force in the secondary when he returns to the field wearing the silver and black.
Second-round pick Trayvon Mullen had a big interception against the Bengals while fourth-round tight end Foster Moreau hauled in a big touchdown (his fourth of the season) to help seal the victory against Cincinnati. Maxx Crosby, another fourth-round pick, had a four-sack game (also against the Bengals) with 8..5 on the year while fifth round wide receiver Hunter Renfrow is already a solid slot receiver, though he’s now injured.
The 2019 draft class truly is one of the best in years.
https://twitter.com/iAM_JoshJacobs/status/1196265842117267456
That’s not to mention the contributions of other young diamonds in the rough like tight end Darren Waller and safety Erik Harris.
As far as the quarterback goes, while Gruden has been vocal of his support of Derek Carr, it’s still possible that he and Mayock draft an heir-apparent and whoever it is will be walking into an ideal situation roster wise.
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Who knows, considering they have even more draft picks to blow, maybe they’ll make a surprise trade up in the next draft or two to snag a stud. No matter the case, there are far worse stopgap quarterbacks to have than Carr.
The Raiders may not be Super Bowl champions this season due to their growing maturity and skills but, again, that’s okay. Because they should be in the discussion for years to come.