Raiders get trampled by Colts as playoff chances tumble

By Case Keefer (contact)

Sunday, Dec. 13, 2020 | 7:50 p.m.

Philip Rivers never stopped talking Sunday afternoon at Allegiant Stadium.

The veteran quarterback directed chatter at whoever was in his vicinity — coaches, officials, teammates on the Colts and opposing players on the Raiders. Rivers had plenty reason to run his mouth as he led Indianapolis to an easy 44-27 victory in its first trip to Las Vegas.

“It was just an efficient day all the way around and it was a good win on the road — a different kind of on the road,” he said after the game.

There was nothing much different about it, however, as it pertains to Rivers and the Raiders.

Like he has done so many times over the past 15 years, Rivers tormented a team he’s long considered a rival. Like they had done so many times over the last 15 years, the Raiders failed to bring their best in a big game.

Las Vegas squandered an opportunity to solidify its playoff standing with the loss, falling to 7-6 and sitting a victory outside the current postseason picture with a third loss in its last four games.

Needless to say, Raiders quarterback Derek Carr was less loquacious than his Colts’ counterpart and kept his postgame comments uncharacteristically brief.

“When you need a win against a team you’re battling with for a playoff spot, it really rips your heart out,” Carr said. “So, it is what it is. You can’t get it back.”

The loss felt similar to defeats of the Raiders’ recent past all the way down to specifics. The organization has fielded a perennially subpar defense ever since Carr arrived seven seasons ago, and the loss to the Colts must count as one of the low points.

Las Vegas forced Indianapolis to punt only once and surrendered 7.7 yards per play — more than two yards higher than the Colts’ season average. The Colts marched down the field with a combined 140 yards split almost equally between the run and pass on their first two possessions to go up 10-0 and give a preview of how the rest of the game would play out.

“We just couldn’t stay with it,” Raiders coach Jon Gruden said. “We were in a situation where we had to score a touchdown every time we had the ball it seemed.”

Las Vegas kept up for a little while. Carr sliced up one of the NFL’s best pass defenses early, finding Foster Moreau and Nelson Agholor down seams in the middle of the field for 47-yard and 21-yard touchdowns, respectively.

The Raiders were ahead 14-10 after the back-to-back touchdowns, but the lead lasted all of 95 seconds. Rivers hit T.Y. Hilton for a 41-yard touchdown, the pairing’s second of the first half, and the Colts never surrendered the lead again.

Hilton beat strong safety Johnathan Abram on the play. Abram returned from a knee injury that sidelined him in last week’s win at the Jets and typified the defensive struggles.

In addition to the blown coverage, he also had at least one missed tackle and a costly unsportsmanlike conduct for a late hit on the Colts’ first touchdown drive.

“Abram has some flashes and also has some plays he’s got to clean up obviously,” Gruden said.

The Colts’ defensive-back play was steadier following the Raiders’ early consecutive touchdown drives. Carr took Las Vegas right down the field again on tits next possession but Colts cornerback Kenny Moore leapt to pull down an interception with one hand in the end zone on a 3^rd-down play.

“That was one of the best defensive plays I’ve ever seen in person in my life,” Carr said. “That play he made was spectacular to say the least, especially with the coverage they were playing and how he played it.”

Las Vegas turned the ball over twice more during a fourth quarter Gruden described as “Helter Skelter.” Both giveaways were in their own territory, as Hunter Renfrow first fumbled at the 25-yard-line to lead to a 35-yard field goal from Rodrigo Blankenship to put the Colts up 37-20.

Then, a few plays later, a slightly off-target pass from Carr intended for Jalen Richard deflected off of the running back’s hands and into the arms of Khari Willis, who returned it for a 50-yard touchdown. The rout was on.

“My job is to take care of the football and my job is to move it, take the team down the field to score touchdowns,” Carr said. “I didn’t do that good enough today.”

Rivers appeared particularly jovial in the second half when he didn’t have to expend much energy himself. Indianapolis was instead paced by rookie running back Johnathan Taylor.

The second-round pick out of Wisconsin rushed for a career-high 150 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries including the longest of his career, a 62-yarder where he went untouched in the third quarter.

“It’s hard to pinpoint (what went wrong) without watching the film,” Raiders linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski said, “but the one thing that sticks out is stopping the run game.”

Las Vegas doesn’t have much time to implement any major fixes with a Thursday Night Football game against the Los Angeles Chargers on deck.

Carr and Gruden said that, because of the short week, their preparation would start immediately after the leaving the stadium. If it doesn’t help lead to a better performance, then Las Vegas is threatening to repeat last year’s end-of-the-season collapse.

The Raiders have sat 6-4 through 10 games for two straight years. Last season, they lost the next four to take themselves out of contention. They’ve at least won one this year, but it was an escape against the winless Jets, the worst team in the league, in the final seconds.

Las Vegas has lost the other two games, to the Falcons and Colts, by a combined 54 points.

The players, led by Carr, have been resolute that this year feels different. It just didn’t seem like it on Saturday, not with Rivers enjoying himself amid a record 19^th career victory over the Raiders.

“We can’t worry about the playoffs and who is winning and losing around the league,” Gruden said. “We have to take care of our business. I don’t want to hear any more playoff questions.”

Case Keefer can be reached at 702-948-2790 or [email protected]. Follow Case on Twitter at twitter.com/casekeefer.