To navigate the road to the NFL playoffs, it helps to have an indestructible Carr and a Mack truck.
Most teams can only dream of having a young superstar on each side of the ball, but that’s what the Raiders possess in Derek Carr and Khalil Mack as they head into December at 9-2 and already having clinched their first winning season since 2002.
“Man, you’re talking about clutch, MVP,” Mack said of Carr after the Raiders’ stirring 35-32 win over the Panthers at the Oakland Coliseum on Sunday. “Coming back from getting a little knick-knack and throwing strikes. He’s a hell of a player, and I’m glad he’s my quarterback. All you can think about is his toughness.”
That “little knick-knack” was a jammed right pinkie that occurred on a botched snap with the Raiders leading 24-7 early in the third quarter. Carr fumbled on the play and came away with a digit that appeared to take a slight left turn at the midway point of the joint.
“It was probably some of the most pain I’ve ever felt in my life,” said Carr, who was able to flex all of his fingers after the game but said it still hurt.
Carr missed one series, then came back with a glove on his throwing hand and the ability to take snaps only in the shotgun. He hit tight end Clive Walford for 17 yards on his first pass, but the second half was turning into a disaster for the Raiders as the Panthers scored four touchdowns in about 12 minutes to take a 32-24 lead. Fortunately for Oakland, it still was a one-score game because Carolina had a PAT blocked and failed on a pair of two-point conversions during the rally.
Carr took the Raiders on a 10-play, 75-yard drive that culminated in a touchdown pass to Walford and a two-point conversion pass to Seth Roberts. The Raiders’ defense held, and Carr hit Michael Crabtree for 49 yards and then 15. Coach Jack Del Rio kept having Carr throw it into the end zone, saving the Panthers a lot of time and their final timeout. After Sebastian Janikowski’s field goal put the Raiders up 35-32, Cam Newton moved the ball as far as the Raiders 44 before getting strip-sacked by Mack, effectively ending the game.
“Knowing that it’s fourth down and they’re going for it and it’s late in the game and they can possibly tie it, you want to make that play, get the ball and end it,” Mack said.
Earlier, Mack scored his first NFL touchdown — on a 6-yard pick-six of Newton — to go along with 28 sacks in less than three seasons.
“He’s got great hands,” Del Rio said. “He can throw it, too. He can do just about anything he wants.”
So the Raiders stay a game ahead of the Chiefs and remain tied with the Patriots atop the AFC. They did it because they have an unbreakable offensive force and a defensive terminator. This team is dangerous.
Willis Reed moment
Carr was a little off on the detail, but the loud roar from the crowd when he returned to the field following his finger injury was reminiscent of the Knicks’ Willis Reed hobbling onto the Madison Square Garden floor for Game 7 of the 1970 NBA Finals.
“You know something hilarious is my coach said, ‘Willis Reed,’ to me on the sideline just to make me laugh,” he said. “I looked at him and said, ‘Who?’ And what’s crazy is I know who Willis Reed is. He came in and dropped 40, right?” Actually, Reed made only two shots, but the frenzy carried the Knicks to a 113-99 win over the Lakers for their first title.
Play of the Day
The final play of Ravens-Bengals looked a like a Mannequin Challenge, but it was really just a smart coaching move by Baltimore’s John Harbaugh. The Ravens had just snuffed out a final Bengals’ salvo as Elvis Dumervil sacked Andy Dalton and forced a fumble recovered by Lawrence Guy at the 21. The Ravens ran three times to burn the Bengals’ last two timeouts and drain the clock down to 11 seconds. But instead of having Sam Koch punt and give Cincinnati a chance at a return or Hail Mary, Harbaugh instructed the other 10 players to hold their man and never let go. After taking the snap and slowly retreating Koch calmly stepped out of the end zone after the clock read all zeroes.
“I tried to mention that that was the best safety ever taken,” said Harbaugh, who tried the same maneuver in Super Bowl XLVII but left four seconds on the clock. “Part of the deal was just identifying all of their men because if we misidentify on the count and leave one guy running through there, he’s going to get to Sam, and there’s going to be very little time off the clock.”
Bad Beat
You’ve got the Bears plus-5 at home and already are writing the check when the Titans take a 27-7 lead with 13:45 to go. Then Matt Barkley throws a touchdown pass to Marquess Wilson with 8:23 left and another to Deonte Thompson on fourth down to make it 27-21 with 3:06 to go. Titans go three-and-out, and Bears move downfield and have first-and-goal at the 7, but a wide-open Josh Bellamy drops an easy touchdown pass in the front of the end zone. Three more incompletions blow the Bears’ chance at a comeback win and make you a one-point loser.
Post Patterns
Sean Payton already had thoroughly embarrassed Rams defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, with the Saints leading Williams’ fifth-ranked defense 42-21 in the fourth quarter. Then Payton had Drew Brees throw a lateral pass to wide receiver Willie Snead, who in turn launched a ball downfield to a wide-open Tim Hightower for a 50-yard score. Was it revenge for Williams’ role in getting Payton suspended for the 2012 season for Bountygate? Payton said only that the Snead pass was something they had been practicing and they got the right defensive look to use it. … After Taylor Gabriel caught his second touchdown pass from Matt Ryan in a 38-19 win over the Cardinals, the Falcons’ official Twitter account trolled the Browns. @AtlantaFalcons posted a copy of Gabriel’s Wikipedia page showing he was released Sept. 3 by Cleveland, along with the message: “Thanks! @Browns.” Ryan became the first passer in NFL history to have 50 consecutive games with 200-or-more yards passing. … Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans (eight catches, 104 yards, two touchdowns) became the fourth player in NFL history to break 1,000 yards receiving in at least each of his first three seasons. The others are John Jefferson (Chargers, 1978-80), Randy Moss (Vikings, 1998-2003) and A.J. Green (Bengals, 2011-15). The Bucs’ defense dominated in their 14-5 win over the Seahawks, sacking Russell Wilson six times and intercepting him twice. … Justin Tucker nailed field goals of 52, 57, 54 and 36 yards in the Ravens’ 19-14 win over the Bengals. He actually made the 54-yarder twice, thanks to a time out by Cincinnati. … According to ESPN, Bears receivers dropped eight passes, tied for the most in any game the past 10 seasons. There was one humorous moment to come out of the Bears’ butterfingers. After Marquess Wilson dropped a potential touchdown pass in the fourth quarter, he kicked the ball into the backside of a Soldier Field security guard who was facing the other way. Wilson quickly apologized to the man.
Three Stars
1. Mark Ingram, Saints RB
Ingram rushed for 146 yards and a touchdown and caught a 21-yard pass for one of Drew Brees’ four scoring throws as the Saints bludgeoned the Rams.
2. Philip Rivers, Chargers QB
Rivers completed 22-of-30 for 242 yards and three touchdowns to become the first visiting quarterback to record a victory in Houston this season.
3. Tyreek Hill, Chiefs WR
Hill became the first player since Gale Sayers in 1965 to score TDs on a pass, run and kick return in the same game, the reception coming with 12 seconds to go to force OT.
He said what?
“It’s a roller coaster. You hear the crowd yelling. Look up at the screen, see you got him beat. Run it in.” — Bills RB LeSean McCoy, describing his career-long 75-yard touchdown run. McCoy rushed for 103 yards in a 28-21 win over the Jaguars six days after undergoing thumb surgery.
Fantasy Insanity
*The Saints scored 49 points. That in itself is no big surprise — they are one of the most explosive offenses, were at home and had a Bountygate ax to grind with Rams defensive coordinator Gregg Williams. But to do so without including receiver Brandin Cooks? At all? Not even a target? That is a surprise. QB Drew Brees makes a habit of spreading around the ball, but this was shocking. This shouldn’t happen often (ever again?). Don’t be shy about starting Cooks in the fantasy playoffs.
*When the 49ers made the QB switch to Colin Kaepernick, the fantasy community sort of shrugged: OK, probably better than Blaine Gabbert, but more of a bye-week filler or streaming option than weekly consideration. Well, it is time to reconsider. He passed for 296 yards and three TDs and added another 110 yards rushing. With a schedule that features the Bears, Jets and Falcons the next three weeks, he will play a significant role in the fantasy playoffs.
*Taylor Gabriel found the end zone twice against the Cardinals on Sunday. He has speed, moves and is an underrated playmaker. But before you go scouring the waiver wires and dropping a more consistent player, realize: This was a game in which cornerback Patrick Peterson was able to minimize the impact of Julio Jones (four catches, 35 yards). This won’t be the case most weeks. Add him if you have an expendable receiver on your roster, but don’t force him in your lineup next week.
– Drew Loftis