Anleitungen » Oakland coach Jon Gruden said he should take the blame

for Derek Carr's bewildering fourth-down throwaway that ended any slim chance of a Raiders comeback.Carr's decision to throw the ball at the feet of running back Jalen Richard when no one was open on a fourth-and-5 play in the fourth quarter of a 20-6 loss Sunday to the Los Angeles Chargers summed up Oakland's fifth straight loss.Carr rolled right on the play looking for Richard in the flat. But with Melvin Ingram chasing him Los Angeles Chargers Womens T-Shirt , Carr just threw the ball away rather than give any of his receivers even a chance at making a play."It was a terrible call by me," Gruden said Monday. "It was a design for Jalen Richard against man-to-man coverage. There wasn't a lot (Carr) could have done. He could have been Fran Tarkenton and done a 360 and reversed the field a few times. There wasn't much there. You got to credit the play caller with that outcome."The Raiders (1-8) were probably hurt more by another fourth-down call on the opening drive. Gruden decided to go for it from the 1 and used a play other teams had success running on the Chargers in the past.Receiver Dwayne Harris came across the formation to take a shovel pass from Carr, but was unable to get to the edge because of missed blocking assignments. Harris was stopped for no gain and the Raiders didn't get into the end zone."Once again, it was not a very good play call because it didn't work," Gruden said. "A lot of people are running that play, as you know, in the tight red zone for obvious reasons. My first time using it wasn't a great experience."Very little has been great for the Raiders this season as they are off to the third-worst start in franchise history, trailing only the 0-10 mark in Carr's rookie season of 2014 and an 0-13 mark in 1962 鈥?one year before Al Davis joined the franchise as coach and then owner.The stretch the Raiders are currently on is as bad as any they've had in 59 seasons as a professional team. They have lost five straight by at least 14 points for the first time ever and are one 14-point loss shy of tying the single-season record for the most by any team since the merger.Oakland has been outscored 75-9 in the past nine quarters and was held without a TD in consecutive games for the first time since 2012."I know it's dark right now," Gruden said. "It's tough. It's tough on our fans. I thank our fans for showing up and being with us. We're going to bring this thing back. I've been a part of it before and we've got some great people to build around. We've got some resources to keep building. I'll leave it at that."The Raiders will go ahead with some key injuries at receiver with Martavis Bryant out with an injured PCL in his knee. Jordy Nelson also hurt his knee and his status for this week remains unknown. Oakland already traded away No. 1 receiver Amari Cooper, leaving Brandon LaFell and Seth Roberts as the team's top two options.Those injuries could lead to an opportunity for rookie Marcell Ateman, who was promoted from the practice squad last month but hasn't had a chance to play yet. Gruden also said he might bring in some receivers this week to try out.The Raiders won't be getting a boost from defensive tackle Eddie Vanderdoes, who was placed on season-ending injured reserve Monday when he was unable to come back from knee surgery. Vanderdoes tore his ACL in the final game of the 2017 season and began this year on the physically unable to perform list after a setback in training camp.He spent the past three weeks practicing but the team determined it was best to let him rest up for next year."We expected him to be ready in camp," Gruden said. "I think right now it's not 100 percent. He hadn't had enough padded practices and been in the trenches enough to activate him, perhaps reinjuring that. I think it's the wise thing to do. We will try to move forward without him and get him healthy for next year." Opposing defenses are learning that Austin Ekeler is just as effective a running back as Melvin Gordon for the Los Angeles Chargers.The second-year running back scored his third touchdown of the season on a 44-yard swing pass from Philip Rivers to lead the Chargers to a 26-10 victory over the Oakland Raiders on Sunday."He's got some juice now. He can really run," Rivers said. "I think he's one of those Los Angeles Chargers Hats , you don't realize how fast he is running until you have to chase him, which I never have, but I've seen a lot of guys do it. That was impressive."Ekeler, signed as an undrafted free agent in 2017, made two Oakland defenders miss at the Raiders 40, got a block from Keenan Allen and then went up the left sideline, putting the Chargers ahead for good."Moves into open space, that's how you can make your money in this league as a running back," Ekeler said. "That's where I think I excel and what I'm going to keep doing, winning one-on-ones."Ekeler has 410 yards from scrimmage, with 207 coming via receptions. He has six touchdowns in his career and is three away from tying Dan Reeves for most TD catches by an undrafted player in his first two years in the league. Reeves had nine with Dallas 1965-66."You wish we would have signed him. He's running hard, he's making people miss," Raiders coach Jon Gruden said. "He has the flexibility to line up in the backfield or in the slot. He's a sharp customer who knows how to play the game."Ekeler and Gordon are averaging 201 yards from scrimmage for the Chargers. Gordon is third among NFL running backs at 119 yards per game, and Ekeler is 12th at 82.Gordon had 120 yards from scrimmage against the Raiders (58 rushing, 62 receiving) Los Angeles Chargers Womens Hoodie , including a 1-yard touchdown run in the second quarter to put the Chargers up 17-3.Rivers was 22 of 27 for 339 yards with two touchdowns and a 143.4 passer rating. He completed passes to seven players, but as he noted, no one had a big yardage day."It wasn't an eight-catch, 150-yard day for anybody, but you look up and there's 330 yards passing and a lot of guys touched the ball," Rivers said. "It was efficient. We ran it well enough and we didn't turn it over. When you do that you have a good chance for a win."Here are some other things to know from Sunday's Raiders-Chargers game:STURGIS' FUTURE IN DOUBT?The Chargers signed punter Donnie Jones last Tuesday to also be the holder on field goals and extra points, thinking that it would help solve Caleb Sturgis' struggles. If the results of one game are any indication, it hasn't.Sturgis made two field goals, but he also missed his fourth extra point of the season and was wide left on a 48-yard attempt on the last play of the first half.The sixth-year kicker has missed four extra points this season, equaling the amount he had over three seasons in Philadelphia from 2015-17."The extra point did bother me a little bit, but we'll figure out what happened there," said Chargers coach Anthony Lynn when asked about Sturgis' struggles. "He's been kicking with a lot of confidence, so I'm not concerned about it."ON THE LINEThe Raiders had a pair of rookie tackles starting in a game for the first time since the 1970 merger, with Kolton Miller at left tackle and Brandon Parker on the right side. Oakland allowed three sacks, but quarterback Derek Carr wasn't ready to single them out."I thought they played really well for it being a tough environment for them Womens Customized Los Angeles Chargers Jerseys , against a great blitz package," Carr said. "Everyone has plays. It's easier to just find, 'Ah, rookie offensive tackle, let's blame him."COSTLY MISTAKEOakland was putting together a nice drive during the third quarter and got to the Chargers' 1 before Derek Carr threw an interception to Melvin Imgram in the end zone. A touchdown would have brought the Raiders within 10 with 1:05 remaining in the third quarter, but it basically ended all hopes for a comeback.Carr has more interceptions (eight) than touchdowns (seven) after the first five games in Gruden's offense. Gruden says that the fifth-year quarterback is progressing, but Carr admitted after the game that he needs to quit pressing."Those are the kinds of things where with my aggressiveness and his aggressiveness, we are learning and he does a great job communicating with me after stuff like that," Carr said. "He doesn't want me to stop being aggressive, but at the same time not forcing them, not pressing and sometimes to not make too many plays."LONDON CALLINGBoth teams have "home" games at London's Wembley Stadium the next two weeks. The Raiders will face the Seattle Seahawks next Sunday, while the Chargers take on the Tennessee Titans on Oct. 21.Oakland will practice at its facility before flying to London later in the week. Los Angeles will stay in Cleveland for four days after facing the Browns next Sunday before making the trip abroad.Follow Joe Reedy at joereedy Custom Tampa Bay Buccaneers Jerseys