Raiders firmly focused on making run to playoffs

When the bedlam finally subsided after Derek Carr’s season-saving touchdown pass to Henry Ruggs gave the Raiders a last-second win over the New York Jets on Sunday, Darren Waller took a minute to quickly assess the situation.

“OK, we’re still alive,” the Raiders’ tight end concluded, breathing a sigh of relief after seeing his team improve to 7-5 and sit poised just outside the playoffs.

He was speaking figuratively, of course. By snatching victory from what appeared to be a certain defeat, the Raiders preserved control of their playoff destiny.

With four games remaining, the next three at home — including matchups with the 8-4 Indianapolis Colts and 8-4 Miami Dolphins, both of whom sit one game ahead of the Raiders in the AFC playoff race — the Raiders can punch their ticket with a clean sweep of their remaining games.

And make no mistake, the Raiders have the playoffs on their mind.

“Of course that’s on the wall,” Waller said.

Added Carr: “Everyone knows the opportunities we have. That’s why I’m super pumped about this. Trust me. … I’m already getting ready for the next one, because like I said, the job’s not finished.”

Now in his seventh year, Carr helped get the Raiders to their last playoff appearance in 2016. But a broken leg late that season denied him the chance to play in that postseason.

Carr is maniacal about securing a return.

“I want that opportunity,” Carr said. “I know our other guys do too. Some of our veterans, some of our young guys and some of the guys we signed in free agency, they came to go to the playoffs. They didn’t come here just to mess around.”

In between the Colts, whom the Raiders host on Sunday at Allegiant Stadium, and the Dolphins two weeks later is a Thursday night matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers. The Raiders conclude their season in Denver against the Broncos on Jan. 3. All four are beatable opponents.

But the Jekyll-and-Hyde inconsistencies of a young Raiders team combined with a roster that is less than complete because of a handful of key injuries renders the task much more formidable than it appears.

The health issues — the Raiders eagerly await the return of right tackle Trent Brown (calf/COVID-19), running back Josh Jacobs (ankle/hip), safety Johnathan Abram (knee) and cornerback Damon Arnette, who left the Jets game with a concussion — are significant.

While head coach Jon Gruden and general manager Mike Mayock have done an admirable job retooling the roster the last three years, it is vital the Raiders have all hands on deck for the final push.

“We need our best players to get on the field,” Gruden said.

Added Carr: “We have to get healthy. We’ve got to get guys back on the practice field. If we can do that, we can make a little run at this thing.”

Beyond better health, the Raiders need to figure out a way to play more-complete games.

The run game that has been an offensive anchor through most of the season has abandoned them the last three weeks in losses to the Kansas City Chiefs and Atlanta Falcons and the narrow win over the Jets.

Defensively, the Raiders have played adequately in spurts, but their all-too-frequent struggles to get pressure on the quarterback and defend in the secondary have left them vulnerable and, in turn, put pressure on Carr and the offense to produce 30 or more points each game.

The return of Brown, who has played just one full game this year, could provide a huge lift for a tattered offensive line. Brown returned to the Raiders’ practice facility last week and could get on the practice field this week.

Getting Jacobs back healthy after he played banged up two weeks ago in Atlanta and missed the Jets game on Sunday is critical to restoring the run game.

And for all of Abram’s issues with over-aggressiveness, the 206 rushing yards the Raiders surrendered against the Jets is evidence of how much they need their tone-setting safety.

Gruden, though, did not sound optimistic on Monday that the Raiders will get the bulk of their injured players back in time for Sunday’s game against the Colts, saying their availability remains an open question.

A healthy roster would give the Raiders a chance to create some much-needed consistency.

“When we put it all together, I don’t think there’s a team in this league that isn’t afraid of us,” Raiders defensive end Cle Ferrell said. “People have seen that. We’ve beaten the so-called world champions. We beat the Saints. We play well against the top-tier teams.

“We still got a long way to go, but for this last stretch, we gotta focus on … realizing that we’ve got the ability to go really, really deep into the playoffs.”

Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on Twitter.