The Las Vegas Raiders suffered another heartbreaking loss on Saturday night, the latest chapter in a season of what could have been.
On Saturday night, the Las Vegas Raiders looked to be headed towards win No. 7 of their 2022 NFL season. Leading for nearly the entire game, all they needed was to stop a late Pittsburgh drive to secure a 10-6 victory inside a frigid Acrisure Stadium over the Steelers.
However, as has been the case all season long, the Silver and Black allowed Pittsburgh to march down the field, and a Kenny Pickett-to-George Pickens touchdown would give the Steelers their only lead of the game. When Derek Carr threw a terribly inaccurate pass to a wide open Hunter Renfrow, one that would be intercepted, it was the final blow of another very winnable game that the Raiders came out on the wrong side of.
In fact, the 2022 NFL season will be quite the ‘what could have been’ season for Las Vegas, a team that should be gearing up for the playoffs right now. Time and time again they have let halftime leads slip away, some leads that were three scores, and in the end, it has culminated with a 6-9 record going into Week 17.
Raiders should have locked up a playoff spot by now
Incredibly, the Raiders are still not eliminated from the playoffs, as the Miami Dolphins lost on Christmas Day to keep their playoff hopes alive. Nobody who has watched this team all season long feels they are a legitimate playoff team, and with the way Carr has been playing as of late, a change at the most important position in sports could be coming this offseason.
Looking back on some of their more embarrassing losses, like the games against Indianapolis, the Los Angeles Rams, New Orleans, and Arizona, the Raiders should be sitting at 10-5 right now, and would have likely already clinched a playoff spot.
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The 2022 season was supposed to be a year where the team built upon their successes last season, but it has been one disappointment after another. Big changes likely are not coming, as they brought in a new head coach and general manager this past offseason, but something has to change if the Raiders want to get back to respectability next season.