The Las Vegas Raiders nearly pulled off an upset against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 5, with their fortunes coming down to one play.
Late in the fourth quarter, the Raiders scored a touchdown, and instead of kicking the extra point to tie the game, head coach Josh McDaniels opted for a 2-point conversion. The play call was for Josh Jacobs to run the ball in, but he was ultimately stuffed right at the goal line.
McDaniels defended the call, citing the offensive momentum Las Vegas had built up to that point via Paul Gutierrez of ESPN:
“I felt like in that situation, [Kansas City] had a lot of momentum offensively, obviously in the second half,” McDaniels said. “We had a play that we felt really good about. I thought we would get a look that gave us a shot at it.”
Jacobs echoed his coach’s comments and even revealed the team had been prepping for such a scenario:
“That’s what we wanted,” Jacobs said. “We knew we was going to be in that situation. It’s crazy, all week we were talking about third-and-1s, fourth-and-1s, 2-point play.
“When I got the ball and the safety shot the hole, I knew it was going to be hairy. I really blame myself because I could have reached the ball over. I know we harp on not reaching the ball, but that was a situation where it wouldn’t have mattered if I did. So, I’ll just put that on my shoulders. I could have reached the ball over.”
As for Derek Carr, he also supported the call in the moment:
“I liked it, I like being aggressive, especially on the road, I’m all on board,” said Carr, who passed for 241 yards and two touchdowns without an interception while completing 19 of 30 attempts.
“When we scored, I was excited, but I was already telling people, ‘Hey, 2!’ And then I looked at Josh [McDaniels], and he said it in my headset … from my view, I thought Josh [ Jacobs] was in. I thought his knee stayed off the ground.
“I mean, we’re this close from being up 31-30,” added Carr, placing his hands inches apart.”
It’s a dispiriting loss that drops the Raiders to 1-4, but they seem to be figuring some things out. While the playoffs remain a near impossibility, it’s good to see the Silver and Black continuing to fight.
