Jimmy Garoppolo - Loser
This is Jimmy Garoppolo's second week in a row as a member of the duds, and as we mentioned in the opening slide, much of the blame for this loss can be laid at his feet. Garoppolo did face some pressure from an active Steelers defensive line, but the mistakes he made were largely unforced errors.
Jimmy's first big mistake of the game came early in the first quarter with the score tied at seven apiece. He made an inaccurate throw to Michael Mayer over the middle, which was easily picked off by a Pittsburgh defender. If Garoppolo had put more air on the throw or simply looked elsewhere, the Raiders' offense would have been in a good position to take the lead after Pittsburgh's big touchdown.
The second interception was by far the more egregious of his three total picks on the night. With seven minutes left in the third quarter and the Raiders down by nine, the offense had the ball at midfield. On second and 10, Garoppolo dropped back with plenty of time and a great pocket, but he made one of the worst decisions we've seen from a veteran quarterback in a long time. It was unclear whether he was trying to throw the ball away or force it to Meyers, but either way, he floated a pass to the right sideline which was easily picked off by Patrick Peterson.
This was the second week in a row where Garoppolo threw an interception with plenty of time in the pocket and no reason to force the issue. A smarter quarterback would have thrown the ball away and given his offense another chance on third and 10, but instead, Garoppolo turned the ball over for the second time on the night.
Jimmy's third interception came in desperation mode, so we won't fault him for that, but he still has six picks through three games and has become a turnover machine for this offense. There are some drives and plays where he looks like an above-average NFL quarterback, but there are far too many plays where he makes terrible decisions and looks completely helpless.
He is currently being evaluated for a concussion after the game, which may explain the poor decision-making, but he also made similar mistakes in week two against Buffalo, and there was no concussion to speak of then. It's becoming abundantly clear that the Raiders do not have an above-average quarterback leading the way, and fans are already calling for Ricky Aidan O'Connell to get a chance.