Nov 9, 2014; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders quarterback Derek Carr (4) reacts after throwing an incomplete pass against the Denver Broncos in the third quarter at O.co Coliseum. The Broncos defeated the Raiders 41-17. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports
It was an embarrassing second half of football on Sunday from the Oakland Raiders to get blown out by AFC West rivals in the Denver Broncos, but leading up to another tough stretch of one of the most difficult schedules in the league for what is the worst team in the NFL by measure of the standings interim head coach Tony Sparano decided to give his team a day off on Monday.
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Oakland head to San Diego this weekend before hosting the Kansas City Chiefs in the first gauntlet of AFC West rivals they face during the second half of their season that has began without a win in nine games. Because of that Sparano felt the team needed a day to recharge, even if they lost badly to the Broncos less than 24 hours prior.
From ProFootballTalk:
"Rather than bury another ball on Monday, Sparano decided it was better to give his team a chance to get away from the game. Sparano gave the Raiders players Monday off, although he explained he’d planned it before he knew that the Raiders would be coming into the week after their ninth loss in as many tries this season.“It’s not a result of what happened,” Sparano said, via the Contra Costa Times. “I kind of figured that’s the way you guys would spin it, but it’s not. I knew in my mind this was going to be a players’ day off, no matter what. I would have liked to call it a ‘Victory Monday,’ but I knew either way I needed to give them a day off to heal up and stop for gas.”"
It will be interesting to see if the day off for the Raiders helps them on Sunday against the Chargers, the team they had the best chance of beating this season with a late fourth quarter lead that was blown at the Coliseum less than a month ago. Derek Carr threw four touchdowns in that loss and the Raiders will be hoping that after two poor showings the rookie can bounce back along with the rest of the team as after holding a 10-6 lead late in the first half, things fell apart against the Broncos on Sunday.
If the Raiders can mount some fighting spirit and gain an upset in San Diego over the Chargers, perhaps Sparano’s “Losing Monday” day off can be pointed out as a coaching tactic that helped spur a change in Oakland. For now it is another interesting move from an interim head coach who has tried a variety of things off of the field to help boost morale for a team that can’t seem to get a win.