The Las Vegas Raiders are in danger of watching the season unravel before the trade deadline following an ugly 32-13 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers at home on Sunday. Following Sunday’s defeat, the Raiders have lost three of their last four games. All three losses were decided by double digits.
The pillars of talent on the roster don’t appear happy with the organization. Wide receiver Davante Adams requested a trade. Defensive end Maxx Crosby was caught by CBS cameras shoving linebackers coach Mike Caldwell. (Crosby would claim on social media that he gave Caldwell a “love push” in the fourth quarter.
A brutal message for the Las Vegas Raiders
Head coach Antonio Pierce had a brutal message for his team after the loss. He called out the coaching staff and his players for not doing enough to win.
Our record is what it [is] … it’s not good enough,” Pierce said via ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez. “We’re not coaching well enough, we’re not playing well enough, and we’re not detailing well enough. More importantly, when you turn the ball over, you don’t give yourself a chance.
Pierce named Aidan O’Connell as the Raiders starting quarterback against the Steelers because he felt the second-year quarterback would protect the ball better than Gardner Minshew. Minshew threw a costly interception in the fourth quarter that allowed the Steelers to expand their lead to 29-7 with 8:32 to play.
An embarrassing Week 6 loss
With RB1 Zamir White riled out before the Week 6 game with a groin injury, back running backs Ameer Abdullah and Dylan Laube each lost a fumble. Pierce was frustrated by the turnovers against the Steelers, as Pittsburgh won the turnover battle 3-0.
“It starts with discipline — we [only] had four penalties, but they were at critical moments,” Pierce said. “The turnover thing is embarrassing. We don’t respect the ball enough, so we don’t even deserve a chance to put ourselves into position to win.”
The Raiders have an opportunity to save their season in Week 7 when they play the 1-4 Los Angeles Rams. In Week 8, they host the Kansas City Chiefs.
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