Photo by Ian Johnson/Icon Sportswire
He threw the last chance into the opponent’s hands: Derek Carr in the game against the Bengals (Cincinnati, 1/15/2022)
In the end it got tight again. A few seconds before the final whistle of the first game of the NFL playoffs between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Las Vegas Raiders, the latter still had a chance to equalize with a touchdown. However, quarterback Derek Carr threw the egg into an opponent’s arms – and the Bengals won the game 26:19.
The defeat marks the end of a turbulent season for the Raiders. At times, pure chaos broke out next to the square.
The current season got off to a promising start for the Raiders, the iconic franchise with the pirate logo – three wins from the first three games. Two defeats and the first scandal of the season followed: In early October, emails from coach Jon Gruden became public and revealed his penchant for homophobia, racism and misogyny.
Gruden, who was presented as a great hope in 2018 but consistently missed the playoffs during his tenure, resigned. Rich Bisaccia, who previously looked after the special teams of the Raiders and had no experience as a head coach, took over for him on an interim basis. From this point at the latest, the Raiders disappeared from the lists of possible playoff candidates for most experts.
Yet the three-time champion won the first two games under Bisaccia. In particular, the connection between quarterback Carr and ball catcher Henry Ruggs seemed to be getting better and better after a difficult first year. But then tragedy happened.
At the beginning of November, Ruggs raced through Las Vegas in his car at over 250 km/h and with a lot of alcohol in his blood. He rammed the car of a 23-year-old, which then burst into flames. She and her dog burned to death. Ruggs now faces a lengthy prison sentence.
Shortly thereafter, another player, cornerback Damon Arnette, had a dropout. In a video that went viral on the internet, Arnette appeared with guns and made a flurry of death threats against people. Like Ruggs, Arnette was fired by the Raiders.
But there were also bright spots in the Raiders’ camp. First, defensive player Maxx Crosby has become one of the best players in his position this season after ending up in rehab with alcohol problems at the start of the 2020 coronavirus pandemic. He was nominated for the Pro Bowl, the annual gathering of the best NFL players.
Teammate Darren Waller made it there a year ago – with a similar background story as Crosby. Waller missed a few games this season due to injury and corona. It was a difficult time for Waller, who then reported that he had “thinked about a lot of crazy things” because of his addiction. The tight end got back on track and helped the Raiders actually qualify for the playoffs in one of the craziest games in NFL history against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Now came the early end – but the playoff participation alone should be a success for the battered team.
