Raiders ride Carr on road

BALTIMORE — For the first time in years, the Oakland Raiders have developed a knack for winning on the road.

Derek Carr threw four touchdown passes, the last to Michael Crabtree with 2:12 left, and the Raiders beat the previously undefeated Baltimore Ravens, 28-27, yesterday.

After the Ravens rallied from a nine-point deficit in the fourth quarter to go ahead with 31⁄ minutes remaining, 2 Carr directed a 66yard drive that ended with a 23-yard strike to Crabtree in the back of the end zone.

The last time Oakland (31) won its first three road games of the season was in 2002.

East coast, West coast, the Raiders don’t care.

“We really at some point stopped talking about the time zones and all that,” coach Jack Del Rio said. “I think good football teams find a way to play well wherever they are.”

Carr went 25-of-35 for 199 yards. Three of his TD passes were to Crabtree, who finished with seven catches for 88 yards.

The Ravens (3-1) trailed 14-3 in the second quarter and 21-12 with 11:11 to go before coming back.

A 52-yard touchdown pass from Joe Flacco to Steve Smith cut the deficit to 21-19. Ravens defensive tackle Lawrence Guy then forced a fumble by DeAndre Washington, and Baltimore recovered at the Oakland 17.

Four plays later, Terrance West scored from the 3 to give Baltimore its first lead.

Oakland had the appropriate response, dropping the Ravens to 49-17 at home over the past nine seasons.

“At the end of the day just a gritty, gritty win,” Del Rio said. “A great road win against a really good football team.”

The Ravens won their previous three games by excelling in the fourth quarter. This game was a throwback to last year, when Carr pulled out a 37-33 win over Baltimore.

Operating against a porous defense ranked 32nd in the NFL, the Ravens didn’t reach the end zone until deep into the third quarter. Flacco was pressured in the pocket for much of the afternoon, in part because starting left tackle Ronnie Stanley was inactive with a foot injury.