Raiders’ Carr, Cooper bounce back in loss
DENVER — Even in a Raiders (0-2) 20-19 loss Sunday to the Broncos (2-0), Carr and Cooper might’ve been the two best players on the field for either team, both showing last Monday might’ve just been a fluke on their 2018 offensive resumes.
Carr completed an astounding 29-of-32 passes for 288 yards and a touchdown, becoming the first player in NFL history to complete over 90 percent of his passes while attempting at least 30 of them. Cooper caught all 10 of his targets for a game-high 116 yards. The Raiders still don’t have a formidable pass rush or the right formula to keep second-half leads, but they can find a silver lining in the fact their two best offensive skill players came back to life in Week 2.
“I thought Carr played great today,” Raiders head coach Jon Gruden said. “He’s a great player. I think he’s going to be an outstanding player.”
“Cooper is involved every week,” Gruden said. “... He’s going to be involved every week. I hope everybody is happy.”
That last part was clearly a jab at those questioning Cooper’s usage in Week 1, but now those questions can be put to rest after Cooper caught the most balls of anyone on the field. Carr found Cooper on consecutive plays late in the first quarter, and in 29 seconds Cooper already had twice as many receptions and more than double the amount of receiving yards as six days prior.
Carr was clicking all afternoon, in part because Cooper’s rhythm allowed others to get open. Eight other Raiders caught passes, with Jordy Nelson, Martavis Bryant and Jared Cook hauling in four each. Carr completed 21 of his first 22 passes, including a healthy dose of Cooper, as the Raiders marched out to a double-digit lead late in the third quarter.
“It’s a good sign,” Carr said of the offensive improvements, “but that doesn’t mean we’ve done anything yet because we have another good defense that we’re going to get ready for this week ... Honestly, I’m not going to lie to you, I have felt last week and this week like I have all camp, all offseason ... I just feel that we are just executing the way that we should.”
Carr didn’t dink-and-dunk as much as we’ve become accustomed to over the past year plus, especially with his top receiver. Five of Cooper’s 10 catches went for double-digit yardage, including gains of 30 yards and 20 yards in less than a two-minute span midway through the third quarter.
Sunday, if the Raiders want to view the glass half-full, at least showed their No. 1 receiv--
er can indeed play like a No. 1 receiver, and their starting quarterback can look his way after all.
“It feels great,” Cooper said. “You want to get into a groove, you want to do everything possible to help your team win. Unfortunately, we came up short today, so we just got to make more plays out there if we want to win games.” NOTABLES * Veteran right tackle Donald Penn shouldered the blame for Oakland’s regulation loss because he missed a block that led to Shaquil Barrett blocking Mike Nugent’s extra point. The Raiders’ lead remained 120 instead of 13-0, and they lost by one. “They had an overload,” Penn said of the play. “I went and did what I always do, but I felt my arm get slapped down. I guess he came through that way ... I just have to try and get wide and try to get a hold of him next time.”
* Kick and punt returner Dwayne Harris missed Sunday’s game with a foot injury, forcing Jalen Richard to return kicks and Jordy Nelson to return punts. Nelson returned only one of Marquette King’s four punts for 7 yards and Richard didn’t return any of the five kickoffs that came his way. “Hope to have him back next week,” Gruden said of Harris. “That was a tough blow again.”
* Former Raider and Broncos punter Marquette King took to Twitter after his win Sunday. I’ll leave this here. Let’s see if you get it.