Failed 2-point conversion drops Raiders to loss in Tennessee

By Case Keefer (contact)

Published Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022 | 2 a.m.

Updated Sunday, Sept. 25, 2022 | 2:56 p.m.

The first victory for the Raiders under new coach Josh McDaniels will have to wait at least one more week.

Las Vegas fell to 0-3 to start the season this afternoon at Nissan Stadium, losing 24-22 to the Tennessee Titans in an afternoon where it took too long for the Raiders to get going. Las Vegas scored a touchdown inside with 1:18 to play when quarterback Derek Carr hit receiver Mack Hollins with a 9-yard fade on fourth down, but the ensuing two-point conversion attempt failed.

Carr’s pass was batted down at the line, and the Titans recovered an onside kick attempt to secure victory.

Hollins emerged as the runaway star of the Raiders’ offense at Nissan Stadium, catching eight passes for 158 yards and the aforementioned touchdown. He keyed a fourth-quarter field-goal scoring drive to get within one touchdown when he caught a 60-yard bomb from Carr down the sidelines.

The Raiders dominated the second half, but had dug too big of a hole with a poor first half. The Titans scored touchdowns on each of their first three drives powered by running back Derrick Henry, who finished with 143 yards on 25 touches including a rushing touchdown.

Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill also completed 11 of his first 12 pass attempts, and had a rushing touchdown, and finished with 264 yards through the air on 19-for-27 passing. His first touchdown pass went to tight end Geoff Swaim.

Las Vegas trailed 24-10 at halftime, with a Daniel Carlson field goal to go with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Davante Adams. The Titans otherwise quieted Adams, who had five catches for 36 yards.

Carr was 26 of 44 for 303 yards and two touchdowns and wide receiver Davante Adams was held to five catches and 36 yards with a touchdown.

The Raiders return to action next Sunday at Allegiant Stadium against the Denver Broncos.

Check back to lasvegassun.com later for more coverage and read below for live updates fro, throughout the game.

The Raiders offense couldn’t muster much in the third quarter, but the Titans couldn’t either. It’s 24-13 Tennessee heading into the fourth quarter after a 32-yard field goal from Daniel Carlson was the only score of the third frame.

The Titans are driving at midfield, having gotten the ball back after the Raiders failed to capitalize on a short field acquired via interception from Duron Harmon. Titans running back Derrick Henry continues to be a problem for the Raiders as he’s gained 84 yards on 16 carries including a touchdown.

Titans up at halftime

Tennessee tacked on three more points to go up two touchdowns at halftime in a game it’s so far dominated.

Randy Bullock made a 45-yard field goal to put the Titans up 24-10 as the teams head to the locker room. Defense has been the Raiders’ biggest problem as it’s hard no answers for either the Titans’ passing game (Ryan Tannehill is 14-for-17 for 195 yards and a touchdown) or their running game (Derrick Henry has 64 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries).

Raiders quarterback Derek Carr is 11-for-15 for 108 yards and a touchdown, but has missed a couple potential touchdown throws. The latest one was thrown just a touch ahead of tight end Darren Waller.

Carr had a chance to orchestrate a two-minute drive at the end of the half, but Titans edge rusher Rashad Weaver came up with a sack. The Raiders will need to be much better in the second half if they want to avoid falling to 0-3 on the season.

Titans in control at home

Las Vegas continues to have no answers on defense for Tennessee.

The Titans scored a touchdown on their third straight drive to open the game, going up 21-10 on the Raiders at Nissan Stadium. A steady dose of Derrick Henry was again the recipe before quarterback Ryan Tannehill snuck in a 1-yard score.

Tennessee is up to 9.2 yards per play as Las Vegas has experienced problems both in coverage and tackling.

Davante Adams scores first for Raiders

The Raiders showed some fight in not letting the Titans run away with them after two early scores for the home team. It’s 14-10 Tennessee early in the second quarter.

Las Vegas hunkered down on offense and scored on a five-yard touchdown pass from Derek Carr to Davante Adams to cap a 7-play, 75-yard touchdown drive in less than five minutes of game time. Adams also had an 18-yard reception on the drive on a double pass from Carr.

Josh Jacobs also got going on the drive, logging three carries including an 11-yard run down to the 1-yard line.

Titans score another touchdown

Derrick Henry keyed on the Titans’ first drive, and then scored on their second.

Tennessee leads Las Vegas 14-3 after the two-time NFL rushing-yard champion plunged into the end zone for a 1-yard touchdown. The Titans got to the goal line on a 13-yard pass from Ryan Tannehill to Treylon Burks.

They’re averaging 8.9 yards per play and clicking in every area. The Raiders have some catching up to do to stay competitive.

Titans score on opening possession

Derrick Henry rumbled, the Raiders’ defense toppled.

The Titans’ star running back got off  to a strong start on the opening drive of the game with 45 yards on six touches, leading his team to a touchdown drive. Tennessee  leads Las Vegas 7-0 after a 2-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Tannehill to Geoff Swaim.

The Titans’ scoring drive consisted of 12 plays to gain 75 yards in 7:38 of game time. It wasn’t the start the Raiders wanted at Nissan Stadium.

Inactives announces

Josh Jacobs will attempt to play today at Nissan Stadium despite missing the last two Raiders' practices and flying in to join the team a day late because of illness.

The starting running back was not on the team's just-released list of inactive of inactive players. The same goes for fullback Jakob Johnson, who was limited with a hamstring injury in practice on Thursday and Friday but will be active for gameday.

Three of the four other players listed as questionable on the final injury report — center Andre James, safety Tre'von Moehrig and defensive tackle Neil Farrell Jr. — are all inactive. Starting defensive tackle Bilal Nichols is active, playing through a shoulder injury.

New tackle Justin Herron, acquired this week in a trade with the New England Patriots, will also make his debut, with space for him on the roster created by tackle Jackson Barton being inactive for the first time. None of the other inactives were a surprise — wide receiver Hunter Renfrow (in concussion protocol), linebacker Denzel Perryman (ankle) and running back Brittain Brown.

Jacobs was the biggest question and most important player to help Las Vegas win what sets up as an essential game after an 0-2 start. It remains to be seen if he can proceed with his usual workload, but he'll at least be eligible to do so.

Pregame

The mood around the Las Vegas Raiders’ facility in Henderson last week was muted. The new-look Raiders often appeared loose and carefree during a training camp and preseason where everything seemed to go perfectly. Even after a 24-19 Week 1 loss to the AFC West rival LA Chargers, the Raiders mostly kept the same attitude. They haven’t been short-tempered or dejected since blowing the largest lead in franchise history last Sunday, but rather focused and determined. They know they can’t afford another defeat to start the season, as only one team in the past 20 years (the 2018 Houston Texas) has overcome an 0-3 record to reach the postseason. The Titans are surely feeling the same pressure after blowing a lead against the Giants in Week 1 and then getting steamrolled by Buffalo in Week 2. These are two playoff teams from a year ago that now find themselves in dire early-season positions.

Favorable matchup: Receiver’s big-play ability vs. Titans’ defensive backfield

Arizona cornerback Byron Murphy had the game of his life last week, and not just because he returned a fumble for a 59-yard game-winning touchdown in overtime. The fourth-year player also spent most of the game covering Davante Adams, who was limited to two catches for 12 yards on seven targets. The Cardinals gave Murphy safety help on Adams, a strategy the Titans may try to replicate. But, given the state of its secondary, it’s hard to see Tennessee finding similar success. Top cornerback Kristian Fulton has been limited in practice and is at risk of missing his second straight game. The Titans’ depth behind him is young and unproven. They couldn’t hold up last week against Buffalo’s Stefon Diggs, who went off with 12 receptions for 148 yards and three touchdowns. Adams and Diggs are two of the very best receivers in the NFL.

Problematic matchup: Quarterback’s scrambling ability vs. Raiders’ defensive scheme

The Raiders couldn’t bring down Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray last week, as he spent inordinate amounts of time scrambling around waiting for openings to develop during his team’s second-half comeback. Ryan Tannehill isn’t nearly as slippery or quick as Murray, but mobility has been a big part of his resurgence in getting a second chance as an NFL starter after beginning his career with the Miami Dolphins.He’s ranked in the top half of quarterback rushing yards in all three seasons. He’s picked up even more yards through the air while on the run out of the pocket. Las Vegas did a decent job of containing Murray in the pocket for most of last week’s game but never appeared to put a spy on him for extra help. That came back to hurt the Raiders in a couple of key situations, and if they’re not careful, it could happen again versus the Titans.

Gamebreaker: Running back Brandon Bolden

For as poorly as Tennessee’s defensive backfield played last week, its front two levels were just as bad in Week 1. The Titans gave up a Week 1-worst 7.4 yards per rush to the Giants, allowing running back Saquon Barkley to post an NFL-best 164 rushing yards on 18 carries. The Raiders' running backs must be praying this is the week where coach Josh McDaniels fully lets them loose and commits to the run throughout all four quarters. The only question now is who would get the bulk of the carries. Starter Josh Jacobs is questionable for the game after missing two practices and not traveling with the team to Nashville on Friday because of an unspecified illness. Zamir White and Ameer Abdullah could see an uptick in workload without Jacobs, but the Raiders' coaching staff seems to trust the veteran Bolden, who's practiced in full after missing Week 2 with a hamstring injury, the most. The midweek weather forecast called for a 50% chance of rain Sunday, meaning the elements could also factor in the Raiders going with a run-heavy game plan. The Titans wouldn’t mind a more physical game where both teams kept it on the ground considering they have Derrick Henry, the star running back who directly preceded Jacobs at the University of Alabama. Bolden, or maybe Jacobs, might need to keep up with Henry here.

The Big Number: 16

That’s the league-leading number of tackles recorded by second-year linebacker Divine Deablo last week. The former third-round pick, who grew up about 400 miles east of Nashville in Winston-Salem, N.C., will need to be a sure tackler again this week going up against Henry. Tackle totals aren’t all that telling of a linebacker’s value, but Deablo did appear to play well against the run last week, which was a necessity with usual middle linebacker and captain Denzel Perryman out with an ankle injury. Perryman didn’t practice again this week, making it unlikely he’ll be available against the Titans. The Raiders came into training camp looking relatively thin beyond Perryman at linebacker, but both Deablo and free-agent pickup Jayon Brown, a former Titan, have been dependable in his absence.

Best Bet (0-2 on the season): Darren Waller to score a touchdown at +190

The safer play would be to go with something priced at shorter odds. That’s tempting, but none of those wagers offers better value than this relative long shot. It’s a terribly kept secret that the Raiders want the 6-foot-6, 266-pound Waller to be their go-to weapon in the red zone. They’ve gone his way every time they’ve been at the goal line, and had a couple near-misses to go with his first touchdown of the year on a 3-yard completion against the Cardinals. The volume around the end zone might even increase this week with slot receiver Hunter Renfrow (concussion) expected to miss the game.