5 takeaways from Raiders’ Week 16 loss to Eagles
By John Buhler
You can’t win a football game if you turn it over five times on the road!
Though it was nowhere near as bad of a loss when compared to that turnover-riddled debacle versus the Buffalo Bills in Week 8 up in Orchard Park, the Raiders turned the football over five times versus the best team in football! You can’t turn the ball over five times on the road and win, period.
Carr had two interceptions. Richard had two fumbles, including the exact opposite of the Frank Wycheck pass in The Music City Miracle. Even reliable bell-cow back Marshawn Lynch coughed it up once. Obviously, the Eagles were looking to force turnovers all night to try to win the ball game. Oakland did force a pair of turnovers on the Eagles offense, but being -3 in turnover differential wasn’t good enough to pull off the upset.
Had it not been well below freezing, the Eagles would have blown the Raiders out on turnovers alone. It was one of those nights where getting into the end zone was tough sledding for both teams. Moving the ball aerially proved to be increasingly difficult as the night wore on.
Though all the turnovers hurt, the last two killed the Raiders. Carr getting picked off by cornerback Ronald Darby ultimately set up the Elliott field goal. Richard’s failed backwards lateral attempt only punctuated the Eagles’ 13th win and the Raiders’ ninth loss of 2017. This is what happens when you are not about the ball.