Raiders aren’t getting the ball down the field

[KC Wolf]

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Before the regular season began, Raider coach Jon Gruden made it clear that he wants to get the ball down the field. On Sunday against the Chiefs, the Raiders did not get the ball down the field.

As noted by Vic Tafur of TheAthletic.com, the Raiders had zero passes on Sunday that traveled more than 25 yards past the line of scrimmage. Making that performance more glaring was that the opponent — the Chiefs — had eight of them.

“We called some shots and obviously the ball didn’t go down the field,” Gruden said Monday, via Tafur. Gruden acknowledged that Kansas City’s pass rush put a crimp in those plans. “It’s a little bit more challenging than just calling up shots.”

Right, but not a single pass thrown more than 25 yards down the field when Gruden was dialing up plays that called for them? It sounds like the kind of thing that could make Gruden wonder whether he’s got the right guy in position to turn Gruden’s wish into reality, especially if Carr doesn’t start finding a way to get the ball down the field.