Raiders rewind: Another special teams meltdown causes implosion in Indy

The Raiders’ fourth straight loss was their worst of the season.

There were not many silver linings to be found. The Colts (4-1) avoided mistakes and were better in all three phases.

Here is a closer look at what went down in an ugly defeat in Indianapolis:

Putting it into perspective

No one around the team will say it, especially with coach Pete Carroll’s mantra of competing every day.

But this is the kind of loss that should have the Raiders (1-4) thinking about the future.

The team entered the year with optimism with Carroll and minority owner Tom Brady on board, but this was a roster with clear flaws. Some injuries to key players did not help matters, either.

There are still no excuses for Sunday’s showing.

Star of the game

It’s hard to find a bright spot from this game, but both the Raiders’ guards played well. Left guard Dylan Parham and right guard Jackson Powers-Johnson stepped up with left tackle Kolton Miller out with an ankle injury.

Safety Jeremy Chinn also had a strong performance, especially as a tackler.

Play of the game

The Raiders were victimized by what appeared to be a bad miss from the officials on a key play in the second quarter.

Quarterback Geno Smith tried to take a shot to the end zone with his team trailing 14-3 and facing a second-and-10 from the Colts’ 11-yard line. Smith may have thought it was a low-risk gamble because defensive tackle DeForest Buckner looked to be across the line of scrimmage early.

The pass was deflected and intercepted. And no flag was thrown, so Indianapolis kept the ball.

“(Smith’s) got a chance to throw a ball in the end zone there because we got a penalty situation,” Carroll said. “And he had a guy open and I think would have been a great throw. Ball got tipped up and turns into a game-changing interception. It’s unfortunate, sometimes that happens, and his response is he sees the guy in the neutral zone, so he knows he has the freedom to make the play.

“That’s a huge play because it’s 14-3, we’re going in right then and feeling pretty good.”

There was blame to be shared on Smith’s other interception in the third quarter as well. Rookie wide receiver Dont’e Thornton Jr. drifted back instead of coming to the ball, which allowed cornerback Mekhi Blackmon to step in front of him. The play should serve as a lesson for Thornton on the importance of fighting for every inch of space on the field.

It’s also a throw Smith probably should not make.

What were they thinking?

It’s difficult to explain why Carroll elected to kick a field goal trailing 40-3 with 11:39 remaining in the fourth quarter.

The Raiders were facing a fourth-and-goal from the 19-yard line. But it was the first time a team kicked a field goal while trailing by 37 or more points in the fourth quarter in more than two years.

Carroll did say, when asked why he didn’t remove Smith for backup Kenny Pickett, that he believes his team needs game reps. He may have felt it was important for his field goal unit to go through the motions, especially after a blocked kick lost his team a game against the Bears in Week 4.

What still made the call curious was the fact that punter AJ Cole, who serves as the team’s field goal holder, suffered an ankle injury on a blocked punt in the second quarter. It may not have been worth it to have Cole trot on the field for another play.

Observations

— The Colts kept going after Raiders cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly, even with rookie third-round pick Darien Porter filling in for injured starter Eric Stokes on the other side.

“Yeah, just keep working with him,” Carroll said of Kelly getting targeted so often. “He’s doing so many good things, but he is getting the action. And it’s interesting, Darien played on the other side and really didn’t see the ball very much throughout the game. And so, there’s ways to help (Kelly) coverage-wise. There’s ways to make sure that we’re just keeping him on it.

“We’ve just got to keep getting better. I mean, they’re going to get the corner sometimes, and we’ve got to help him as much as we can.”

— The Raiders have had all sorts of issues filling in for tight end Michael Mayer, who has missed two straight games with a concussion.

Chicago ran right around the edge Mayer usually protects on its field goal block. Against the Colts, backup tight end Ian Thomas whiffed from Mayer’s usual spot on Cole’s blocked punt.

“We’ve had a couple plays that have happened where Mike Mayer plays and we haven’t backed it up well enough,” Carroll said. “These guys have been challenged, and so we’ve got to get our guys right. If Mike can play, then we’d like to get him back in there. But there’s been a couple situations that have occurred where he’s a key player for you and it just shows you that it’s hard with backups who’ve got to come in and they’re called on to play just like a legit starter, and so hopefully we clean that up.”

Carroll said Cole has a low-ankle sprain. He will rest it until Friday before attempting to punt.

— The Raiders are starting to turn to young players as their struggles continue.

Rookie wide receiver Jack Bech, a second-round pick, set career highs in targets (five), receptions (three) and receiving yards (27). Rookie defensive tackle Tonka Hemingway, a fourth-round pick, got 14 snaps on defense. Rookie defensive tackle JJ Pegues, a sixth-round pick, played 12.

Both Hemingway and Pegues held their own.

“They got a taste of it, run game, pass game,” Carroll said. “They got some action. It’s just bringing them along. And the whole idea has always been if you play guys early, by the time you get to midseason, it’s comfortable for them to be in the games and you pick up more quality depth from those guys, as opposed to holding them out, not giving them a chance.”

— Star defensive end Maxx Crosby got all kinds of attention from the Colts offensive line and was limited to just two pressures on 32 pass-rushing reps.

Crosby also wasn’t feeling his best.

“I was a little banged up from the last game, and unfortunately I got a little sick early in the week as well,” he said Monday on his radio show. “So it was a tough week, but at the end of the day there’s no excuses. I still had to show up and still gotta be there for my guys. So we gotta reset, and we gotta focus on getting another win.”

Looking ahead

The Raiders return home to play the Titans (1-4), who picked up their first win of the season Sunday.

This is an opportunity for the team to get right. A loss would mean the season is officially spiraling.

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.