Defense, Patterson’s late reception, keep playoff hopes alive
OAKLAND, Calif. — Cordarrelle Patterson became a one-man magic show.
After catching a pass that quarterback Derek Carr lobbed beautifully off his back foot in the face of a seven-man rush, the Raiders wide receiver spun out of two arm tackles, cut right, zagged toward midfield and stiff-armed a linebacker to the ground before being dragged down for a 54yard gain.
Of course, any magician needs a big reveal.
Patterson turned to the Raiders’ sideline and removed his helmet, unveiling a beaming smile and thick, shiny gold chain. The Denver Broncos hadn’t snatched his.
“I don’t beef on the football field,” Patterson said. “I love my money too much to go out there, start fighting, get fined, get kicked out the next week and lose all that money. I really ain’t got time for that. So I just go out there and try to make friends with everybody.”
A good-natured Patterson finished Sunday what the defense started. The Raiders totaled a season-high five sacks and ended a historic interception drought under a rain-scattered sky at the Oakland-alameda County Coliseum. But they needed their offense to dispose of the Denver Broncos late in a 21-14 win.
The Raiders (5-6) played with three wide receivers for most of the game. Michael Crabtree was ejected early
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time in five weeks and won a game they absolutely needed, beating Denver 21-14 before 53,930 and in the process embracing a reality of controlling their own destiny when it comes to making a second consecutive trip to the NFL playoffs.
It won’t be easy.
One rally around a broken chain does not make a division champion.
But while tied for second place with the Chargers — one game behind the suddenly inept Chiefs — the Raiders at least own a visible path to the postseason after the first 11 games were often defined by inconsistent and underwhelming play.
They’re 5-6 and still very much in things.
“We knew this was a must win for us,” said quarterback Derek Carr. “After the game, we find things out, what happened around the league … It doesn’t mean anything if we don’t take care of business. We know where we stand.”
In a week where defensive coordinator Ken Norton Jr. was fired, where several players on that side of the ball vehemently disagreed with the move, where reports surfaced that offensive coordinator Todd Downing could also be soon shown the door, the Raiders responded with one of their best all-around efforts of the season.
It began with a near-brawl, and had nothing to do with the Black Hole.
Crabtree and Talib — both ejected along with Raiders right guard Gabe Jackson, who made contact with an official during the skirmish — have tussled before. It was during a regular-season finale on Jan. 1 when Talib also helped himself to Crabtree’s jewelry, later telling reporters that it annoyed him.
I wonder what he thinks of that Flava Flav clock chain.
I’m not so sure this time was as unexpected as many assume, given Crabtree got things going by throwing a punch at Chris Harris Jr. the previous play.
Harris didn’t hide his displeasure, and Talib had no problem with a little retaliation, which spilled into a potentially dangerous situation of several players becoming involved. How crazy was it?
As he walked toward the tunnel to depart the field, Talib went right through the Raiders sideline and past Crabtree.
The one walking with him to make sure nothing else occurred?
Marshawn Lynch … your silver and black peacemaker.
“We all knew it was going to happen,” said Raiders wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson. “It was just a matter of time. Everybody was ready, prepared for it.”
Which means while it might be a leap the distance between Oakland and Los Angeles to suggest Crabtree entered Sunday and his matchup with Talib with the intent of rekindling their feud, it might not be.
“I guess (Crabtree’s) initiative was to come out and fight today,” Harris said. “I guess it wasn’t to play football. He just punched me in the stomach.”
‘We need to get hot’
It’s not the way Raiders coach Jack Del Rio wants his players to compete — “I like my guys to do the right thing and keep their composure and not get tossed,” he said — but if there was ever a moment this particular team needed to exhibit some expansive level of mental and physical toughness, this was it.
It was a difficult week in what has been an incredibly challenging season.
Expectations, fair or not, have not been met on the scoreboard.
So when one of your top two wide receivers is ejected early and the other, Amari Cooper, is lost to a concussion in the second quarter, and a starting guard is also sent to the showers for running into one of those guys wearing a striped shirt, and you respond by leading 21-0 en route to victory, that shows fight and spirit and resolve.
The path to a playoff berth for the Raiders is far more reasonable as a division champion than wild-card team given many potential tiebreaker situations likely wouldn’t fall in their favor, meaning games at Kansas City (Dec. 10) and the Chargers (Dec. 31) should be major factors when deciding which of the three claims a crown.
And while fighting the way Crabtree did Sunday won’t get the Raiders there, doing so in the manner his teammates responded just might.
“Obviously, we need to get hot,” said Del Rio, whose team next hosts the 2-9 Giants. “We need to play good football. Winning is hard in this league.”
It will continue to be so.
But the Raiders have a visible path, and all it took was one yank of a sweet necklace to create it.
Contact columnist Ed Graney at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702383-4618. He can be heard on “The Press Box,” ESPN Radio 100.9 FM and 1100 AM, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday. Follow @edgraney on Twitter.