Carr throws for 382 yards, Raiders top Steelers

PITTSBURGH » Jon Gruden’s long, arduous multi-state, multiyear rebuilding project may finally be nearing its end.

The swagger might be back for the Las Vegas Raiders. The deep ball certainly is.

Derek Carr threw for 382 yards and two touchdowns, including a pretty 61-yard strike to Henry Ruggs midway through the fourth quarter, as the Raiders toppled Pittsburgh 26-17 on Sunday.

Not bad for a team playing on a short week on the other side of the country without its starting running back and any sort of offensive balance. It didn’t matter, particularly once the Steelers lost star outside linebacker T.J. Watt to a groin injury in the second quarter.

“Honestly, anytime (Watt) is on the field he wrecks everything,” Carr said, later adding, “When he’s out of the game you notice he’s out but that doesn’t mean that we can do this or we can do that. We run our stuff in Las Vegas and have full confidence in our guys.”

It certainly looked like it. Carr shredded the Pittsburgh secondary in Watt’s absence, completing 16 of 21 for 263 yards in the second half, including a 9-yard flip to Foster Moreau in the third quarter and a rainbow to Ruggs with 9:35 remaining that gave the Las Vegas defense all the cushion it would need.

“You just see this gear that not a lot of human beings have,” Carr said of Ruggs. “It makes it fun for me.”

Ben Roethlisberger passed for 295 yards, including a 25

yard catch-and-run early in the fourth quarter that rookie running back Najee Harris turned into the first touchdown of his career that drew the Steelers within 16-14.

The Raiders (2-0) responded immediately. Facing third-and-10 on Las Vegas’ next possession, Carr had plenty of time to step up and heave it to a streaking Ruggs, who raced past Pittsburgh’s Minkah Fitzpatrick and Ahkello Witherspoon and into the end zone as the Raiders beat the Steelers for the sixth time in their last eight meetings.

“Not many guys can run that fast and track the ball,” Gruden said of Ruggs. “It was certainly a big play. The protection, the revolving door we had up front in the critical moment and the throw … there was a lot of good stuff to go around.”

Ruggs finished with five receptions for 113 yards, one of four Raiders with five grabs as Carr spread it around.

“We’re loaded with playmakers,” Ruggs said. “We have guys ready to step up at any time.”

The Steelers held Las Vegas tight end Darren Waller relatively in check until it mattered. Waller’s 25-yard reception with just over 2 minutes to go set up Daniel Carlson’s fourth field goal that provided the final margin, sending the first full crowd at Heinz Field in nearly 21 months trudging toward the exit.