By Alan Snel of LVSportsBiz.com
With all the sadness, turbulence and difficult times, the Las Vegas Raiders somehow found a path to the NFL postseason.
The Raiders deserve a lot of credit for that.
But the adversity-filled season ended nine yards short of a tying touchdown against the Cincinnati Bengals with seconds left in the game and the Raiders’ season came to a screeching hall in the first playoff game of the NFL’s three-day wildcard weekend. The Raiders were last team in and first team out.
A season filled with heart break, tragedy, and resiliency is now over. I’m so proud of our TEAM and what we accomplished. Everyone outside the building doubted and we overcame. To those who encouraged and strengthened our guys thank you. We will see you again soon. — Raiders quarterback Derek Carr
The Bengals advanced with a 26-19 win over the Raiders, which tried their oft-used high-wire act of getting into overtime and walking off the field with an OT win at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati. Attendance was announced at 66,277.
“We’ve been pretty good in overtime,” Raiders interim coach Rich Bisaccia said after the game. “We just didn’t play well enough in the red zone.”
The Raiders finished the season with a 10-8 record.
Defensive end Maxx Crosby, who emerged as a star for the Raiders this season, posted this tweet after the game:
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Only ten years ago in Las Vegas, it would have been laughable to think that the market would have both a world-class NFL stadium and an NFL team playing a playoff game today.
But it’s true. Las. Vegas. Raiders.
Say it again. Las Vegas Raiders. It’s their second season based out of Sin City, which used to be off-limits to the NFL.
No more. The NFL can’t get enough of Las Vegas with decisions to stage the Pro Bowl in February, the draft in April and the Super Bowl in February 2024.
This season was the first year that fans were allowed inside domed Allegiant Stadium to watch Raiders home games, so it seemed like Year 1 even if it was Raiders Year 2 in Las Vegas.
And the Raiders being the Raiders gave everyone a season to remember for good (seven walk-off wins in 10 team victories) and bad (a receiver accused of DUI and killing another motorist; a coach who resigned from an email scandal).
But the Raiders found a way to navigate this season of mass turbulence by winning each of the last four games by four points or less and zooming on the NFL’s final week from being outside the playoffs to the number five playoff seed and the conference’s top wild card team.
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The Raiders’ absolutely heart-thumping 35-32 win against the Los Angeles Chargers last Sunday night propelled the team to play fourth-seeded Cincinnati for the first of the NFL’s six wild card games over three days.
At 1:36 PM Las Vegas time, the Bengals kickoff sailed into the end zone and the Raiders began their quest for a Super Bowl championship.
Quarterback Derek Carr, the heartbeat of this unpredictable team, started the game by converting two third downs. But the drive stalled and Raiders money placekicker Daniel Carlson booted a 47-yard field goal with 9:23 left in the first quarter. Carlson ended up kicking three more field goals, but those came after the red zone-challenged Raiders could not score touchdowns.
But the Bengals and their star quarterback Burrow responded. He led the Bengals on an impressive drive, including slicing the Raiders porous red zone defense for a short touchdown pass and the Bengals led, 7-3, midway through the first quarter.
Then the Raiders began collapsing. Poor pass protection (a tight end trying to block a defensive end) led to a strip sack of Carr, who coughed up the ball before the Bengals recovered.
To the Raiders’ red zone defense credit, they held and limited Cincy to a short field goal.
Then Peyton Barber pulled off a boneheaded play by fielding a ball at the two-yard line on the ensuing kickoff and stepping out of bounds.
The Bengals took advantage of their good field position after the Raiders’ punt and cashed in for another field goal in the second quarter. The Bengals led, 13-3.
The game’s most controversial play happened when Cincinnati’s Burrow tossed a TD pass to Tyler Boyd in the back of the end zone midway through the second quarter, but an official blew a whistle while the ball was in the air. The touchdown should not have counted under rules, but the officials let the touchdown pass stay.
The Raiders countered when Carr rifled a 14-yard touchdown pass to Zay Jones with only 13 seconds left in first half and the Raiders trailed, 20-13, at the half.
The Raiders made a crucial stop late in the four quarter to stop the Bengals from making a game-clinching first down.
The Raiders responded by moving to the Cincy nine-yard line and it appeared the Raiders’ wild, late-game ways would force another overtime this season.
But missed opportunities in the red zone thwarted the Raiders this time.
The season ended with Carr getting intercepted by Germaine Pratt two yards shy of the goal line.
Game over. Raiders season over.