Oakland Raiders at Cincinnati Bengals: 5 takeaways from Week 15

Ugly fumbles lost

A big catalyst in the Raiders being unable to overcome the deficit, at one point which read 17-0, was the fact that Oakland lost not one but two fumbles in the first half. The first was at the expense of a sack on Carr on the blind side, and the latter came when Jalen Richard coughed up the ball in the second quarter.

While Carr has not thrown an interception in eight straight games he has had trouble holding onto the ball when being brought down in the pocket. Not entirely his fault, as he’s been playing behind a battered offensive line, but the fumbles lost have been killer no less.

Against the Bengals they proved to be the tipping point in an early game in which defense was at the forefront. Had the Raiders not lost those two fumbles, perhaps the deficit would not have grown to as much as 17 points.