Silver Linings for Raiders After Tough Loss to Bears

It would be easy to focus on the negatives that come with losing three consecutive games, and that will certainly be done for the Las Vegas Raiders over the next few days. Still, the Raiders' goal coming into the season was to show improvement over time that would lead to more wins.

The wins have been slow to come, but Sunday's matchup against the Chicago Bears witnessed the Raiders show marked improvement in multiple areas. The loss will be talked about all week, but there are other notable aspects.

The Good News

Following the Raiders' loss on Sunday, Raiders Head Coach Pete Carroll gave credit where credit was due. Carroll's experience through decades of coaching shone through after Sunday's disappointment.

“We ran the football for a ton. We protected all day, no sacks and 230, 240 rushing, whatever it was. After all, I'm sure it was being talked about. I was thrilled for the guys up front. It was a great game for them, for the offensive line, and to see Ashton [Jeanty] get cooking like that. You can see how special he is. They can't tackle him in the open field, and he makes it look easy, which really good players do," Carroll said.

Carroll noted that despite the loss, there are positives that can be gleaned from a loss that should have been a win for the Raiders. Objectively, Las Vegas' performance on the ground, on defense, and along their offensive line was all things the Raiders should aim to replicate in Week 5.

“So, we're very fortunate that this game finally came. We've been waiting for it, and everybody felt like it was just an eyelash from happening, and now that he's busted, you can see it. Raheem [Mostert] did really well, too, and complemented the one-two punch for those two guys and was really excellent today," Carroll said.

“What did we rush for? 240 or something? I mean, that's a fantastic game for us, and so it's a great statement for us moving forward and getting better. You guys can go nuts on the stats and the numbers in one week to the next, but it takes time, and you have to look at the big picture of things to really assess what's going on. I'm thrilled that we were able to do that today."