Raiders End Season with Tough Road Loss, Eliminated by Titans Win

Final: OAK 15 DEN 16 (7-9)

Now the 2019 NFL Regular Season has ended. The Raiders drop their final regular season matchup representing the city of Oakland with a 15-16 loss. I already tuned out of this game as soon as the Titans sealed the win against the Texans. As I mentioned last week, they were fortunate some chips fell into their favor. This week, not so much. The scenario was clear: a win, TEN loss, PIT loss, IND win and either a CHI or NE or LAC or DET win and they're in. The latter I found out earlier and the Bears did pull out a close one against the #6 seeded Vikings to keep the Raiders hopes alive but faintly.

The way this game went on in the midst of all this playoff chaos, it was without question, the most Raider thing to ever unfold to sum up two decades of futility. Raiders string together good drives. As usual, they can't punch it in the end zone. Daniel Carlson misses a 30+ yard chip shot field goal. Two TDs were called off by the refs. I don't know how they miss Alec Ingold's second effort when he slightly extended the nose of the football on the goal line. Penalties. And the end result in a loss to a bitter rival. You can't write off a better ending as they transition to Vegas.

I would not blame this game too much on the defense. They did just enough to keep the Raiders in the game. Derek Carr and the offense just couldn't deliver with a lot of stalled drives. Then again, they had way too many injuries to overcome with Incognito and Trent Brown out and of course, Josh Jacobs' absence in the running game. The decision to go for two, I'm not too mad about it. The Titans took care of business against the Texans to close the door on the Raiders' playoff hopes. They had nothing to lose and it's pretty pointless to take the game into overtime with nothing to play for at that point.

With that being said, glad this season is done with. Even if the Raiders did their job and the scenarios that needed to happen happened, to have this team limp into Foxborough and avenge a call we dare not mention 18 years later is asking a bit too much. It would be good experience for the young rookies, but this team would be severely overmatched, especially on the road. Overall, this record is what was expected of the Raiders. We expected them to improve their win total from 4-12 last year. The fact that they were in the playoff hunt until the end was an added bonus. They have something to build upon as the team transitions from Oakland to Las Vegas. Stay tuned for my annual Season in Review post as I summarize and break down what has transpired this season. I'll see you guys later.