Raiders can’t finish what they start in 28-20 loss to Dolphins
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Whatever future level of dominance the Raiders might reach under Jon Gruden seems destined today to exist only in flashes. A half of football here. A half-quarter there. Glimpses, however glamorous, are all the 2018 team has proven it can muster.
Exotic yet exhausting.
Inspiring yet inadequate.
The work-in-progress Raiders revealed themselves again Sunday — for better and for worse.
By and large, the team handled the Miami Dolphins early on a sweltering afternoon at Hard Rock Stadium. But where there was Beauty, there was Beast. The offense stalled often in the red zone, and the defense allowed wide receiver Albert Wilson to throw a 52-yard touchdown and catch a 74-yard score in the fourth quarter of a 28-20 loss.
The Raiders led 17-7 in the third quarter. They’ve been outscored 37-3 in the fourth this season, including 14-3 Sunday. They are winless in three games.
Fast starts. Slow finishes. Rinse, repeat.
“I’ve been part of years where finishing was easy, right, and the beginnings were the problem,” said quarterback Derek Carr, whose 156 passing yards in the first quarter were a career high. “This is just what we have to deal with right now. I think we need to finish our practices better, finish our lifts better, finish meetings better, finish everything better because clearly we’re doing everything better at the beginning.
“We can finish in all phases better, and I think that’s what’s going to put us over the hump. It’s no secret. We’re running the same plays. We’re getting the same looks and all of those things. I think the little things we need to finish better.”
Carr and Jordy Nelson opened with a clinic.
They connected on a 61-yard pass on the second play from scrimmage and a 12-yard touchdown on the fourth snap. After the defense forced a three-and-out, Nelson had a 66-yard reception to set up first-and-goal from the 8-yard line.
Someday, this could be where the Raiders execute.
They worked to the 1-yard line, but fullback Keith Smith was stuffed on a fourth-down carry up the middle. Carr threw an interception on the first play of the next drive; wide receiver Amari Cooper didn’t notice the deep pass in the air. The two other Raiders drives that half were a three-and-out and 16-play series that stalled at the 9-yard line for a field goal.
“We’ve got to make sure we keep our foot on their necks and finish,” tight end Jared Cook said.
Field conditions Sunday were formidable.
It was 90 degrees at kickoff. With the humidity, the heat index reached 99 degrees, according to National Weather Service. Wide receiver Dwayne Harris exited in the second half to receive intravenous fluids in response to muscle cramping. After halftime, fans appeared in no rush to return to seats in the sun.
Here, the Raiders ran hot and cold.
They managed two touchdowns on five trips inside the Dolphins’ 20-yard line. On the last visit, Carr threw an end zone interception, a pass he heaved while defensive end Cameron Wake slammed into his right ribs. Two plays later, Wilson caught a shovel pass and sprinted untouched for 74 yards.
Months or years from now, the Raiders’ inconsistent execution this month may be remembered as the price for something better, as the growing pains to a new offense and defense that Gruden and defensive coordinator Paul Guenther installed this offseson, respectively.
On Sunday, it was just another uneven afternoon.
A tale as old as time.
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Contact reporter Michael Gehlken at mgehlken@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GehlkenNFL on Twitter.