The Raiders went into Sunday’s game against the Jets in great position. At 6-4, Oakland was coming off three straight victories and playing a team with a losing record. A win at the Meadowlands would have given the Raiders a boost heading into an AFC West showdown with 7-4 Kansas City this coming weekend.
But a brutal 34-3 loss to the Jets now puts the Raiders in a terrible spot. With the loss, the Raiders have just a 25% shot to make the playoffs, according to the New York Times’ playoff simulator, which gave them a 60% chance before the Jets loss.
The Raiders must immediately bounce back and travel to Kansas City – a place that’s historically been a graveyard for visiting teams – and beat a Chiefs team that shredded them, 28-10, in September. Then, the Raiders must beat the Titans, a 6-5 team that has come alive the past two weeks with impressive victories over the Chiefs (35-32) and Jaguars (42-20).
Against the Jets, the Raiders were outgained 401-208, Josh Jacobs was held to just 34 rushing yards and Derek Carr, who was pulled for the fourth quarter, threw for just 127 yards. Nothing worked.
"We got our face kicked in a little bit," Carr told Vic Tafur of The Athletic. "You try to look forward and hopefully, it wakes everybody up. … We better show up (against the Chiefs) or they’re going to beat us by 50."
The Raiders not only lost to the Chiefs in September, but lost both games to K.C. in 2018 by a cumulative score of 75-36. Oakland hasn’t beaten the Chiefs since October of 2017, when it prevailed 31-30.
Carr told the media Sunday after the loss that his team has been much better than others expected, already with six victories with a roster filled with promising rookies and newcomers. But it must quickly rebound if it wants to stay in the playoff hunt.
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"We’re still a good football team," he said. "But it is what it is. We’re still building that foundation."
Sunday’s game at Kansas City is set for a 10 a.m. kickoff.
