Carr’s TD pass with 5 seconds left lifts Raiders past Jest
(AP) — The game appeared all but over and the Las Vegas Raiders were about to lose to the lowly New York Jets.
Derek Carr and his teammates refused to be embarrassed.
Carr heaved a perfectly placed 46-yard touchdown pass to Henry Ruggs III with 5 seconds left, lifting the Raiders to a wild 3128 victory over the still-winless Jets on Sunday.
“Once I looked back, it felt like the ball was in the air forever, like it couldn’t come down,” Ruggs said. “I just had to find it and make the play.”
The Jets took a 28-24 lead with 5:34 remaining on Ty Johnson’s 1-yard touchdown and the defense came up with a big fourthdown stop that appeared to end New York’s agonizing wait for its first win.
But New York went threeand-out with a chance to seal it — and Carr and the Raiders had 35 seconds left for what appeared an unlikely comeback. Four plays later, the Jets blitzed and Carr found Ruggs streaking downfield — beating rookie cornerback Lamar Jackson — for the winning score.
“I couldn’t believe they all-out blitzed us,” Carr said. “As soon as I saw it, I was thankful.”
It set off a wild celebration for the Raiders (7-5).
“It didn’t feel real to me,” said tight end Darren Waller, who had two touchdown catches. “I didn’t know what was going on. I sprinted full speed to Henry. ... It was pandemonium on our sideline.”
Meanwhile, the deflated Jets (0-12) could only imagine what could — and maybe should — have been.
“Our players work way too hard to go through this (crap),” New York coach Adam Gase said.
After a squib kick by Las Vegas, the Jets had one final chance but Sam Darnold’s Hail Mary throw was batted down in front of the end zone.
“It’s heartbreaking,” said Johnson, who ran for a careerhigh 104 yards and a touchdown for the Jets.
Carr threw for 381 yards and three touchdown passes, and ran for another score. Waller had 13 catches for 200 yards, becoming the 12th tight end since the 1970 merger with 150 or more yards receiving and two or more TD catches in a game.
Clelin Ferrell had two stripsacks in his return from the COVID-19 list as Las Vegas bounced back from a blowout loss to Atlanta last week to stay in the middle of the AFC playoff hunt. Barely. “It was so hard to really enjoy it because the game was so much a sway of emotions the whole game,” Ferrell said. “I know the Raiders fans were really, really trippin’ the whole game. Up and down, up and down — it was crazy.”
On the drive before the winning possession, it appeared the Raiders had the go-ahead touchdown on fourth down when Hunter Renfrow caught a pass in the end zone — but the teams had offsetting penalties. Given one more chance, Carr’s pass to Nelson Agholor fell just short in the end zone and the defense raced off the field, arms raised in celebration.
But it was only momentary jubilation.