Whew.
What a bad day for the Las Vegas Raiders and their fan base, to put it lightly. Things have certainly been bad for the Silver and Black for the better part of two decades, but this felt like another new low in yet another inconceivably bad season.
This version of the Raiders is not close to talented enough to compete in the AFC West, not disciplined enough to stay competitive in games, and clearly, not well-coached enough to beat the 2-8 Cleveland Browns at home. Led by a rookie quarterback in his debut as an NFL starter, no less.
Las Vegas' 24-10 loss to the Browns, which was more lopsided and debilitating than the final score even indicates, was the Raiders' worst loss of the season. It's truly hard to pick, as Las Vegas has been so brutally outmatched in so many games, but this might have taken the cake.
Raiders' loss to Browns should be final nail in the coffin for Pete Carroll
The Raiders were never really in the ballgame, as they dug themselves a 14-0 hole at the end of the first quarter, and finished the contest with 10 points, seven of which came in garbage time. No facet of the game played well, as Las Vegas dropped its fifth straight contest.
Not only have the Raiders lost five straight games, but they've dropped nine out of their last 10 matchups. Six of those losses have come by at least two scores, and the other three came by a combined five points. Las Vegas is getting blown out, but also can't win close games, either.
There is no excuse for this team to keep the same leadership, or really any of the major pieces in place. Pete Carroll, Geno Smith and Chip Kelly have made this team astronomically worse than last year, and the Raiders finished 4-13 while also going on a 10-game losing streak in 2024.
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Brennan Carroll's offensive line gave up a whopping 10 sacks to the Cleveland defense, and although Smith didn't throw an interception on Sunday, he fumbled the ball twice. The defense also missed 10 tackles in the game, and they had 13 penalties for 109 yards.
Unfortunately, there is just nothing for this fan base to hold onto and be optimistic about, outside of Ashton Jeanty, Brock Bowers, Kolton Miller and Maxx Crosby. There is a case to be made for a handful of other guys sticking around next year, but this campaign has warranted a full-on blowup.
Even if everyone keeps their jobs after this monstrosity of a game, this should be the moment that owner Mark Davis looks back on at the end of the year when he decides Carroll's fate, as well as everyone else's. This was downright embarrassing, and unfortunately, there's no guarantee it won't get worse.