Oakland Raiders: The good, bad, and ugly in week eight loss to Colts

Bad: Still Not Targeting Receivers Often

If there is one knock you can lay on Carr’s game against Indianapolis, it’s that he didn’t target his wide receivers very often. But, that’s been a consistent theme with Carr all season long.

On the day, Carr completed 21 passes. Of those 21 completions, only six of them went to his wide receivers – Seth Roberts had two (four targets), Brandon LaFell had three (four targets), and Jordy Nelson had one (four targets).

Las Vegas Raiders

Running back Jalen Richard led the team in receptions with eight, and tight end Jared Cook led the team in receiving yards with 74.

Oakland’s receivers accounted for a combined total of six receptions, for 95 yards, and two scores.

That fits the theme of the season though. Richard leads the team in receptions with 39 (303 yards), and Cook leads the team in receiving yards with 474 (on 36 receptions). Nelson is a distant third with 23 receptions for 337 yards – though, he is tied with Cook for most touchdowns with three.

Against Seattle in London a couple of weeks back, Carr attempted just one pass that traveled more than eight yards beyond the line of scrimmage. Against Indianapolis, the majority of Carr’s throws still came within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage, but he did take some deeper shots, and had some success pushing the ball downfield.

For the Raiders to take the next step in developing this offense, Carr is going to need to learn to trust his wide receivers to make plays. He’s going to need to target them more, and get them more incorporated into the offensive mix, rather than checking down instantly.