The Raiders always find a way to make us believe they are ready for great things; to take the next step, however, little by little, this year is turning into more of the same: Everything points to Las Vegas falling into an inevitable bottomless slump, and his first really questionable stumble was this afternoon by 20-9 score against the Bears with a rookie quarterback in command:
The Raiders are returning to their place
Last Monday against the Chargers there wasn’t much to claim from the Raiders after their loss, but this week it’s very different; those led by Jon Gruden were fatal against some Bears who on the field had a rookie quarterback and two backup running backs. Quite simply, considering such a scenario, Las Vegas could not afford to lose this match.
Without a doubt, the first to be criticized is QB Derek Carr, who in the first three weeks looked phenomenal, even recording numbers that made him enter the MVP early conversation. However, in the last two games he has shown a totally unknown face: 2 TD, 2 INT, just 402 yards and a QB rating of 76 is what he registers between weeks 4 and 5, in which this team has been lost within the field of play.
But Carr doesn’t play alone; his running attack has done absolutely nothing since Josh Jacobs returned from injury. More precisely, he only accumulates 88 total yards and 1 touchdown in 28 carries between the games of Week 4 and today. The runs on the ground were much more functional at the hands of backup Peyton Barber, who unfortunately is injured and will miss several weeks that, apparently, the Raiders will continue to suffer in that backfield anyway.
For its part, today the air defense did not look bad; they only allowed 109 total yards. In any other situation this should be admirable, but they did it against QB Justin Fields, who this afternoon made his starting debut in his short NFL career. So those numbers were to be expected.
Finally, against the running game, there is more rope to stretch: Chicago played without RB1 David Montgomery, who last week was placed on Injured Reserve with a knee injury, but even with such an absence, the Bears capitalized on every opportunity. and gap against the defensive terrestrial drain that Las Vegas presented today.
For these reasons it is easy to assure that this defeat of the Raiders is very significant. After a great 3-0 start to the 2021 NFL Season, they now have two consecutive losses, and in such a tight AFC West you can’t afford that luxury. Next Sunday they will visit Denver in a divisional game that will be key in the aspirations of both teams this season, and surely, whoever loses it will be able to say goodbye to the divisional title.
Bears surprise Raiders in Las Vegas 👀#DaBears | #CHIvsLV pic.twitter.com/KRdxyZea8f
– First and Ten (@Primeroydiez) October 10, 2021
Chicago more alive than ever at NFC North
Meanwhile, the Chicago thing is to be applauded. They came to today’s game as clear victims; already mentioned, without his starting running back and with a Justin Fields who barely made his starting debut after veteran QB Andy Dalton was benched. And, even so, entering as prey and simple rival, they took a triumph from where few expected.
To be honest, Fields did not play spectacularly, but he did fulfill his role. 12 completions on 20 attempts for 111 yards and 1 TD helped Chicago leave Las Vegas with a 20-12 victory. In addition, his QB rating of 91.9 is the highest at the time of his career. Added to this, and against all odds, the running game also stood out: between RB Khalil Herbert and Damien Williams, the Bears registered 129 total yards and 1 TD, making Montgomery’s loss forget at times.
However, we cannot ignore the defense, which was practically the one that sealed the job. They only allowed 71 yards on the ground, 188 through the air, and had 3 sacks and 1 INT off Derek Carr. To make matters worse, they held the Raiders at bay by just allowing them 5 of 14 conversions on third downs. Simply spectacular work.
Thus, after this result, Chicago becomes 3-2, but unlike the Raiders, this team is going up, so much so that they are more alive than ever in the NFC North. Those led by Matt Nagy are only one game away from the Packers, who they will face next week, and if they manage to defeat them, we could surprisingly see the Bears in first place in their division at the end of Week 6.
Can the Bears win the NFC North with Justin Fields? Are the Raiders doomed to go into a tailspin once again? We read you in the comments under this article and on our social networks.
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