When the NFL schedule makers revealed the Week 11 Monday Night Football matchup (7:15 p.m., TV: ESPN) in mid-May, it’s safe to say they were expecting both the host Las Vegas Raiders and visiting Dallas Cowboys to be in a much better predicament than they are at present.
The Raiders (2-7) have gotten off to a nightmarish start in their first season under the esteemed Pete Carroll, highlighted by a four-game losing streak from Week 2 through Week 5 and another three-game drought beginning in Week 7 through last Thursday’s loss to the Denver Broncos, a heartbreaking 10-7 setback which Las Vegas seemingly refused to win.
Even with all the hope that placated the Raiders fanbase this offseason, the Carroll regime is in the same place Antonio Pierce was through nine games if you look solely at the record. When you dive deeper into the results, however, the Raiders have been far more competitive this season and are truly just a few bad breaks away from additional wins.
“It’s been crappy, and this is not what I expected to happen,” Carroll said. “I didn’t feel like we would be this far behind at the start of the season … It’s a kick, it’s a blocked kick, it’s an OT catch. There are four to five games here that could have flipped just like that, just with small margins of better play, better execution, better calls, and all of that.”